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68Ga-DOTATATE Uptake in a Soft Tissue Metastasis From Clear Cell Renal Cell Cancer
Clinical Nuclear Medicine
|October 28, 2017
Summary
Gallium-68 DOTATATE PET/CT imaging revealed unexpected uptake in a soft tissue lesion, which was confirmed as metastatic clear cell renal cell cancer. This highlights a potential diagnostic pitfall for this imaging agent in specific cancers.
Area of Science:
- Nuclear Medicine
- Oncology
- Radiology
Background:
- Metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) requires accurate staging and monitoring.
- Gallium-68 DOTATATE (Ga-DOTATATE) Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography (PET/CT) is increasingly used for neuroendocrine tumor imaging.
- The utility of Ga-DOTATATE PET/CT in non-neuroendocrine malignancies is less established.
Observation:
- A 64-year-old male with known metastatic ccRCC underwent Ga-DOTATATE PET/CT for disease progression assessment.
- The imaging revealed focal, increased Ga-DOTATATE uptake (SUVmax 13.8) in a left thigh soft tissue lesion.
- This lesion was surgically resected for further analysis.
Findings:
- Cytopathological examination of the resected soft tissue lesion confirmed it to be a metastasis of clear cell renal cell carcinoma.
- The increased Ga-DOTATATE uptake was directly attributable to the ccRCC metastasis.
Implications:
- This case demonstrates that Ga-DOTATATE can accumulate in soft tissue metastases from clear cell renal cell carcinoma.
- Clinicians should consider ccRCC metastasis as a differential diagnosis for Ga-DOTATATE uptake in soft tissue lesions, even in the absence of neuroendocrine features.
- Further research is warranted to understand the mechanisms and prevalence of Ga-DOTATATE uptake in non-neuroendocrine cancers.
