Continuous innovation in precision radio-guided surgery.

Since its origins, nuclear medicine has faced technological changes that led to modifying operating modes and adapting protocols. In the field of radioguided surgery, the incorporation of preoperative scintigraphic imaging and intraoperative detection with the gamma probe provided a definitive boost to sentinel lymph node biopsy to become a standard procedure for melanoma and breast cancer. The various technological innovations and consequent adaptation of protocols come together in the coexistence of the disruptive and the gradual.

Sentinel Node Imaging and Radioguided Surgery in the Era of SPECT/CT and PET/CT: Toward New Interventional Nuclear Medicine Strategies.

We review recent technological advances and new clinical indications for sentinel node (SN) and radioguided surgery in order to delineate future tendencies of interventional nuclear medicine in this field. A literature research was performed in PubMed to select relevant articles to be used as key references for analysis of the current approaches and tendencies in SN and radioguided surgery, as well as the evolving contribution of nuclear medicine intervention techniques to the various clinical applications. For classic indications such as melanoma and breast cancer, the incorporation of the SN approach based on the combined use of existing and new preoperative and intraoperative technologies in high-risk patient categories is becoming an emerging area of clinical indication.

Prognostic significance of 99mTc Hynic-rh-annexin V scintigraphy during platinum-based chemotherapy in advanced lung cancer.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate if sequential 99mTc Hynic-rh- annexin V scintigraphy (TAS) can predict outcome in patients with advanced lung cancer, shortly after the start of platinum-based chemotherapy.

Patients And Methods: In 16 consecutive chemotherapy-naive patients with advanced stage non-small-cell lung cancer scheduled for platinum-based chemotherapy, TAS was performed before and within 48 hours after the start of therapy. Chemotherapy-induced changes in tumor annexin V uptake, calculated as maximum count per pixel and expressed as percentage to baseline value, were compared with treatment response determined according to Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors.