Whole body and tomographic scan with 111In-pentetreotide: preliminary data

Since December 1993, in the 1st Nuclear Medicine Service of the University of Padua, eleven somatostatin-receptor scintigraphic studies with 111In-labelled pentetreotide have been performed. The patients (6 men and 5 women, age 28-68, mean 45 years) were affected by a variety of tumors which supposedly express somatostatin receptors: 2 meningotheliomatous meningiomas post-surgery; 2 glucagonomas with liver metastases observed on CT; 2 patients with suspicion of insulinoma; 2 carcinoids, one after surgery; 1 ectopic-ACTH Cushing's syndrome; 1 intracranial germinoma, post-surgery, in whom the study was requested to evaluate a doubtful finding of pulmonary metastatic lesion on CT; and 1 acromegaly showing, on MRI, and empty sella turcica occupied by and extraflexion of the lower portion of the chiasmatic cisterna without signs of adenoma and the sphenoidal sinus occupied by tissue wit inflammmatory characteristics. Somatostatin-receptor whole body scintigraphy was performed 4 and 24 hours after intravenous injection of 110 MBq 111In-pentetreotide (Octreoscan 111); spot images were acquired when judged necessary. In one case of glucagonoma, a tomographic scan (SPECT) was also performed to better evaluate the spatial relationship between the primitive pancreatic tumor and surrounding tissues. Focal accumulation of 111In-pentetreotide was scintigraphically detected in 5 of the 11 cases. Intense uptake of the radiopharmaceutical was observed in the meningiomas, in the glucagonomas with liver metastases, and in the case of acromegaly, corresponding to a GH-secreting adenoma. The negative scans seem to be true negative scans with the possible exception of one patient with a still unconfirmed suspicion of insulinoma, still not confirmed.