Effectiveness of Tc-99m MIBI scintigraphy in diagnosing lung cancer

The use of Tc-99m hexakis 2-methoxy isobutyl isonitrile (MIBI) scintigraphy for qualitative diagnosis was examined. A total of 37 lesions from 31 patients with respiratory disease (19 lesions from 19 primary lung cancer patients, 8 lesions from 3 metastatic lung cancer patients and 10 lesions from benign lung disease patients) were examined. Positive results were seen in 89.4% of the primary lung cancer lesions, 50.0% of the metastatic lung cancer lesions, and 20.0% of the benign lung disease lesions. The positive rate of 77.7% for malignant lung cancer was significantly higher (P < 0.01) than that for benign lung cancer. In particular, for lesions with a tumor diameter of 1.0 cm or more, the positive rate for malignant lung cancer lesions (95.2%) was significantly higher (P < 0.001) than that for benign lung disease lesions (25.0%). These results thus indicate Tc-99m MIBI scintigraphy to be useful for qualitative diagnosis of lung peripheral coin lesions with a diameter of 1.0 cm or more.