Exploring the link between tumour metabolism and succinate dehydrogenase deficiency: A F-FDOPA PET/CT study in head and neck paragangliomas.

Objectives: Nuclear imaging findings by virtue of phenotyping disease heavily depend on genetic background, metabolites, cell membrane specific targets and signalling pathways. PPGL related to succinate dehydrogenase subunits mutations (SDHx mutations) are less differentiated than other subgroups and therefore may lack to concentrate F-FDOPA, a precursor of catecholamines biosynthesis. However, this F-FDOPA negative phenotype has been reported mostly in SDHx-PPGL of sympathetic origin, suggesting that both genotype status and location (from sympathetic vs parasympathetic paraganglia; adrenal vs extra-adrenal) could influence F-FDOPA uptake.