Role of PET/CT IN Staging of Gastric Role of PET/CT IN Staging of Gastric Role of PET/CT IN Staging of Gastric Role of PET/CT IN Staging of Gastric Carcinoma Carcinoma Carcinoma Carcinoma

Abstract

Abstract 18F-FDG-PET alone has a limited role in detecting and evaluating the local extent of primary gastric cancer with a low detection rate of early gastric cancer and variable uptake depending on histological subtype. PET/CT imaging in gastric cancer, with it"s increased accuracy in preoperative staging precluding unnecessary surgery and increased sensitivity for detection of recurrence in post-operative follow-up of patients, will be utilized more in the future in the correct clinical setting. Prediction of early response to therapy for 18F-FDG-avid tumors, which helps to estimate prognosis and survival rates, will help to monitor individualized therapy, preventing unnecessary prolonged chemotherapy and therapy-related toxicity. Keywords: Fluorine-18 Fluoro deoxy – D glucose, Positron Emission Tomography-Computed Tomography, gastric carcinoma