The Role of PET Imaging in Patients with Prion Disease: A Literature Review.

Prion diseases are rare, rapidly progressive, and fatal incurable degenerative brain disorders caused by the misfolding of a normal protein called PrPC into an abnormal protein called PrPSc. Their highly variable clinical presentation mimics various degenerative and non-degenerative brain disorders, making diagnosis a significant challenge for neurologists. Currently, definitive diagnosis relies on post-mortem examination of nervous tissue to detect the pathogenic prion protein.

The Prognostic Value of F-FDG PET Imaging at Staging in Patients with Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma: A Literature Review.

Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is an aggressive malignancy, frequently diagnosed at locally-advanced/metastatic stages. Due to a very poor prognosis and limited treatment options, the need to identify new prognostic markers represents a great clinical challenge. The prognostic role of metabolic information derived from Positron Emission Tomography (PET) with F-Fluoro-deoxy-glucose (F-FDG) has been investigated in different MPM settings, however with no definitive consensus.

Short 2-[F]Fluoro-2-Deoxy-D-Glucose PET Dynamic Acquisition Protocol to Evaluate the Influx Rate Constant by Regional Patlak Graphical Analysis in Patients With Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer.

To test a short 2-[F]Fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-[F]FDG) PET dynamic acquisition protocol to calculate K using regional Patlak graphical analysis in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). 24 patients with NSCLC who underwent standard dynamic 2-[F]FDG acquisitions (60 min) were randomly divided into two groups. In group 1 ( = 10), a population-based image-derived input function (pIDIF) was built using a monoexponential trend (10-60 min), and a leave-one-out cross-validation (LOOCV) method was performed to validate the pIDIF model.

Cavernous Hemangioma: A Potential Pitfall at Delayed 18F-FDG PET/CT Scan.

We report the case of a 72-year-old woman who underwent neoadjuvant chemotherapy, right quadrantectomy (invasive ductal carcinoma, G3, pT2pN1pMx), and adjuvant radiotherapy. Two years later, a follow-up CT revealed a hepatic nodule of approximately 1 cm suspected for metastasis. 18F-FDG PET/CT was performed for restaging.

PET/MRI for neuroendocrine tumors: a match made in heaven or just another hype?

Purpose: To evaluate the current literature on technical feasibility and diagnostic value of PET/MRI in management of patients with neuroendocrine tumors (NETs).

Methods: A systematic literature search of the PubMed/MEDLINE database identified studies that evaluated the role of simultaneous PET/MRI for the evaluation of neuroendocrine tumors in human subjects. Exclusion criteria included studies lacking simultaneous PET/MRI, absence of other than attenuation-correction MRI pulse sequences, and case reports.

State of the art in magnetic resonance imaging of hepatocellular carcinoma.

Background Liver cancer is the sixth most common cancer worldwide and the second leading cause of cancer mortality. Chronic liver disease caused by viral infection, alcohol abuse, or other factors can lead to cirrhosis. Cirrhosis is the most important clinical risk factor for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) whereby the normal hepatic architecture is replaced by fibrous septa and a spectrum of nodules ranging from benign regenerative nodules to HCC, each one of them with different imaging features.

Complete metabolic response to therapy of hepatic epithelioid hemangioendothelioma evaluated with 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/contrast-enhanced computed tomography: A CARE case report.

Rationale: Hepatic epithelioid hemangioendothelioma (EHE) is a rare malignant vascular tumor of endothelial origin with a highly variable clinical presentation and natural history. Given its vascular origin, new therapies with inhibitors of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) have been introduced in the treatment of these patients and have shown promising results. Few reports have described the role of F-Fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/contrast-enhanced computed tomography (F-FDG PET/CT) in the evaluation of this tumor after treatment with anti-angiogenic agents.

Detection of recurrent pancreatic cancer: value of second-opinion interpretations of cross-sectional images by subspecialized radiologists.

Purpose: To investigate the value of second-opinion interpretation of cross-sectional images by subspecialized radiologists to diagnose recurrent pancreatic cancer after surgery.

Methods: The IRB approved and issued a waiver of informed consent for this retrospective study. Initial and second-opinion interpretations of 69 consecutive submitted MRI or CT follow-up after pancreatic cancer resection between January 1, 2009 and December 31, 2013 were evaluated by one oncologic imaging radiologist, who was blinded to patient's clinical details and histopathologic data.

Microbiological Infections in Women With Cervical Cytological Reports of Atypical Squamous Cells of Undetermined Significance.

Objective: To study the role of cervicovaginal infections in women with cytological reports of atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance (ASC-US).

Materials And Methods: The study included 220 women admitted to the Clinic of Microscopy, Cervicovaginal and Vulvar Pathology of the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics of the Tor Vergata University Hospital, Rome, Italy, enrolled between October 2012 and July 2013.

Results: Among the enrolled women, 105 women (47.