Prognostic Value of Radiomic Analysis Using Pre- and Post-Treatment ¹⁸F-FDG-PET/CT in Patients with Laryngeal Cancer...

The prognostic value of conducting ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT imaging has yielded different results in patients with laryngeal cancer and hypopharyngeal cancer, but these results are controversial, and there is a lack of dedicated studies on each type of cancer. This study aimed to evaluate whether combining radiomic analysis of pre- and post-treatment ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT imaging features and clinical parameters has additional prognostic value in patients with laryngeal cancer and hypopharyngeal cancer.

From 2008 to 2016, data on patients diagnosed with cancer of the larynx and hypopharynx were retrospectively collected. The patients underwent pre- and post-treatment ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT imaging. The values of ΔPre-Post PET were measured from the texture features. Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) Cox regression was used to select the most predictive features to formulate a Rad-score for both progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Kaplan-Meier curve analysis and Cox regression were employed to assess PFS and OS. Then, the concordance index (C-index) and calibration plot were used to evaluate the performance of the radiomics nomogram.

Study data were collected for a total of 91 patients. The mean follow-up period was 71.5 mo. (8.4-147.3). The Rad-score was formulated based on the texture parameters and was significantly associated with both PFS (p = 0.024) and OS (p = 0.009). When predicting PFS, only the Rad-score demonstrated a significant association (HR 2.1509, 95% CI [1.100-4.207], p = 0.025). On the other hand, age (HR 1.116, 95% CI [1.041-1.197], p = 0.002) and Rad-score (HR 33.885, 95% CI [2.891-397.175], p = 0.005) exhibited associations with OS. The Rad-score value showed good discrimination when it was combined with clinical parameters in both PFS (C-index 0.802-0.889) and OS (C-index 0.860-0.958). The calibration plots also showed a good agreement between the observed and predicted survival probabilities.

Combining clinical parameters with radiomics analysis of pre- and post-treatment ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT parameters in patients with laryngeal cancer and hypopharyngeal cancer might have additional prognostic value.