Correlation between breast cancer and background parenchymal uptake on 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography.

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate differences in background parenchymal uptake (BPU) between patients with and without breast cancer using 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography.

Methods: Female patients (n = 130, 62.9 ± 12.7 years) with newly diagnosed breast cancer and 50 healthy participants (59.6 ± 13.3 years) without breast cancer were retrospectively included. BPU was evaluated using the maximum standardized uptake value. Data on participant age, body mass index, blood glucose level, and menopausal status were collected from medical records. Breast density was evaluated using mammography. Logistic regression analysis and receiver operating characteristic curves were used to examine the correlation between breast cancer and various characteristic factors, including BPU.

Results: The BPU of patients with breast cancer was significantly higher than that of controls (P < 0.001). The results of logistic regression analysis regarding the presence of breast cancer demonstrated that BPU and menopausal status showed higher odds ratios of 13.6 and 4.25, respectively. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for BPU was 0.751.

Conclusions: Patients with breast cancer showed higher 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose-BPU. Glucose metabolism of mammary glands may correlate with the development of breast cancer.