PET/CT versus whole body CT for staging bone cancer in dogs

Abstract

Few studies have investigated the diagnostic performance of fluorine-18-fluorodeoxyglucose (F-FDG) positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) for staging veterinary patients with appendicular osteosarcoma. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy ofF-FDG-PET/CT compared to whole-body CT (WBCT) for staging canine patients with appendicular osteosarcoma. TheF-FDG-PET/CT imaging studies of 66 dogs with appendicular osteosarcoma were anonymized and separated into two detached studies (one with whole body pre- and post-contrast CT images and the other with the whole body pre- and post-contrast CT images with the associatedF-FDG-PET overlay). Image assessment was performed retrospectively by five board-certified veterinary radiologists. The radiologists were instructed to assign a predefined categorical score (1-4) to each pre-designated anatomic region based on a devised lesional scoring system. A score of 1 was normal, 2 abnormal but not neoplastic, 3 abnormal and concerning for neoplasia, and 4 abnormal, most likely neoplastic. Overall, the likelihood of detection of '3 or 4' was found to be significantly higher withF-FDG PET/CT when compared to WBCT after adjusting for the effect of evaluator and the subject. Most significantly, 13 osseous lesions concerning for metastasis (scored 3-4) were identified in 10/66 dogs by at least one reviewer onF-FDG PET/CT, which were not identified by any reviewer on WBCT. Additionally, four comorbid neoplastic lesions were identified withF-FDG PET/CT and not with WBCT. The results of this study suggest thatF-FDG PET/CT is more efficacious in detecting metastatic and comorbid neoplastic lesions compared to WBCT in dogs with appendicular osteosarcoma.