[Detection of cholangiocarcinoma in primary sclerosing cholangitis by positron emission tomography]

Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) predisposes to cholangiocarcinoma (CC). PET scanning can assess metabolism in vivo. The glucose analogue [18 F]fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (FDG) accumulates in malignant tumours because of high glucose metabolism. PET scanning of the liver was performed after intravenous FDG in nine patients with PSC, six with PSC + CC, and five controls. "Hot spots" with radioactivity accumulation were seen in each PSC + CC patient, but not in the two other groups. Values of net metabolic clearance of FDG, K (ml min-1 100 ml-1 tissue), was in CC hot spots 1.59 to 4.17 (median, 2.34; n = 6); in reference liver tissues of these patients 0.40 to 0.69 (0.49); in PSC 0.23 to 0.53 (0.36); in controls 0.20 to 0.34 (0.31). The difference between K in CC hot spots and the other groups was statistically significant (P < 0.001). FDG-PET may detect small CC tumours and be useful in therapeutic management of PSC.