Diagnosis and follow-up of neuroblastoma by means of iodine-123 metaiodobenzylguanidine scintigraphy and bone scan, and the influence of histology.

The purpose of this work was to compare technetium-99m-diphosphono-propanedicarboxylate (DPD) and iodine-123-metaiodobenzylguanidine (MIBG) scans in the diagnosis and follow-up of neuroblastoma, and to study the role of histological differentiation in the uptake of MIBG. The uptake of MIBG and of DPD were studied retrospectively in 27 patients with neuroblastoma (primary, residual and recurrent tumours as well as bone and bone marrow metastases). The findings were related to the histological classification of the tumours as neuroblastoma (N1), differentiating neuroblastoma (N2) or ganglioneuroblastoma (N3).