PET/CT in oncology: a major technology for cancer care

PET-CT can image tumor metabolism, proliferation, hypoxia, and apoptosis with precise anatomic image fusion and will become an essential tool in the management of patients with cancer by its ability to assess the extent and severity of disease and treatment response. F-18 fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (FDG) is the most frequently used radiopharmaceautical today and new F-18 labeled ligands are under development. It has changed dramatically the management of numerous cancers such brain tumors, head and neck cancers, thyroid cancer, parathyroid cancer, lung cancer, esophageal cancer, lymphoma, pancreatic cancer, colorectal cancer, and many others. Its utility for non-cancerous conditions is also gradually established. In this article the basic technology, the ligands available for routine clinical applications, and expected developments in the near future will be addressed. PET-CT will be used with increasing frequency and will become progressively used as a surrogate marker for disease response. Novel ligands, labeled with F-18, will further increase the clinical utility of this technology.