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PET/CT Imaging Characteristics After Radioembolization of Hepatic Metastasis from Breast Cancer

  • Clinical Investigation
  • Imaging
  • Published:
CardioVascular and Interventional Radiology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

To define positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) imaging characteristics during follow-up of patients with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) treated with yttrium-90 (Y90) radioembolization (RE).

Materials and Methods

From January 2011 to October 2017, 30 MBC patients underwent 38 Y90 glass or resin RE treatments. Pre-RE PET/CT was performed on average 51 days before RE. There were 68 PET/CTs performed after treatment. Response was assessed using modified PERCIST criteria focusing on the hepatic territory treated with RE, normalizing SUVpeak to the mean SUV of liver uninvolved by tumor. An objective response (OR) was defined as a decrease in SUVpeak by at least 30%.

Results

Of the 68 post-RE scans, 6 were performed at 0–30 days, 15 at 31–60 days, 9 at 61–90 days, 13 at 91–120 days, 14 scans at 121–180 days, and 11 scans at > 180 days after RE. Of the 30 patients, 25 (83%) achieved OR on at least one follow-up. Median survival was 15 months after the first RE administration. Highest response rates occurred at 30–90 days, with over 75% of cases demonstrating OR at that time. After 180 days, OR was seen in only 25%. There was a median TTP of 169 days among responders.

Conclusion

In MBC, follow-up PET/CT after RE demonstrates optimal response rates at 30–90 days, with progression noted after 180 days. These results help to guide the timing of imaging and also to inform patients of expected outcomes after RE.

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Funding

This research was partly funded through the NIH/NCI Cancer Center Support Grant P30 CA008748 and the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Interventional Radiology Service, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA

    Amy R. Deipolyi, Ryan W. England, Fourat Ridouani, Henry S. Kunin, F. Edward Boas, Hooman Yarmohammadi & Constantinos T. Sofocleous

  2. Molecular Imaging and Therapy Service, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA

    Christopher C. Riedl

Authors
  1. Amy R. Deipolyi
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  2. Ryan W. England
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  3. Fourat Ridouani
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  4. Christopher C. Riedl
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  7. Hooman Yarmohammadi
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  8. Constantinos T. Sofocleous
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Amy R. Deipolyi.

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Conflict of interest

Dr. Deipolyi reports personal fees from BTG, Inc., personal fees from Dova Pharmaceuticals, outside the submitted work. Dr. Boas is a co-founder of Claripacs, LLC, and received a research grant and supplies from Guerbet, research support from GE, research supplies from Bayer, and a research grant and speaker fees from Society of Interventional Oncology, sponsored by Guerbet; he is also an investor in Labdoor, Qventus, CloudMedx, Notable Labs, and Xgenomes. Dr. Yarmohammadi received research grants from the Thompson Foundation and Guerbet. Dr. Sofocleous received consulting fees from Terumo and consulting fees and research funding from BTG and Johnson and Johnson. The other authors have no disclosures.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. For this type of retrospective study, formal consent is not required.

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This study has obtained institutional IRB approval, and the need for informed consent was waived due to its retrospective nature.

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Deipolyi, A.R., England, R.W., Ridouani, F. et al. PET/CT Imaging Characteristics After Radioembolization of Hepatic Metastasis from Breast Cancer. Cardiovasc Intervent Radiol 43, 488–494 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00270-019-02375-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00270-019-02375-7

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