[Current status of positron emission tomography in diagnosis of abdominal tumors]

PET is recognized as a powerful imaging research tool. Based on pathophysiological and biochemical principles, functional PET imaging allows to assess parameters of tumor biology not easily accessible to conventional imaging such as metabolic activity, proliferation, adrenergic transmitter uptake or accumulation of cytostatic drugs in individual tumor manifestations. This article reviews recent developments of PET imaging with 2-[F-18]fluoro-deoxyglucose (FDG) in the Diagnosis of abdominal malignant tumors. Diagnosis of pancreatic carcinoma and its liver metastases, locoregional and distant recurrence as well as therapy control of colorectal cancer, nodal and extranodal staging and therapy monitoring of malignant lymphoma can be reliably achieved with PET. Encouraging clinical results and attractive new imaging concepts promise increasing use and importance of PET for imaging abdominal malignancies.