Advancement in pelvic cancer imaging: choline PET/CT in developing countries

Abstract

Author(s): M.Chihabeddine*, A. Naim, H. Boulmane, Z. Dahbi, F. Kouhen and R. Rabii

Introduction: Prostate cancer is the second most common cancer among men. Despite its early diagnosis and improved curative treatments, the rate of recurrence remains high, with one in two cases relapsing within ten years. Positron Emission Tomography (PET) with a radiotracer is most commonly used in prostate cancer. Indeed, prostate cancer is one of the malignancies known to have an increased metabolism of phosphatidylcholine, an essential component of the cell membrane, by increasing the level of choline kinase and increasing the rate of choline incorporation.

The aim of this study is to determine the role of Choline Positron Emission Tomography (choline PET/CT) in prostate cancer through our experience and a literature review.

Methods: This is a retrospective study carried out at the Sheikh Khalifa Hospital over 2 years from January 18, 2019, to January 31, 2021. The inclusion criteria were any patient with histologically confirmed prostate cancer who had undergone choline PET/CT in the Department of Nuclear Medicine.

Results: During the study period the Nuclear Medicine Department performed (n=60) choline PET scans. The average age of patients is 67 years with extremes of 52 and 82 years.

The average PSA level was 125 [0-1800]. The main indication was in the context of a biological relapse assessment, followed by an evaluation of the therapeutic response and in the context of an initial extension assessment. PET was able to detect local and/or distant lesions in 80% of patients in our series.

Conclusion: As there is no PET scans with Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen (PSMA) in Morocco, choline PET is an alternative that has allowed better therapeutic management of our patients and thus the improvement of their prognosis.

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