[18F] FDG PET in gastric non-Hodgkin's lymphoma

The possibility of using [18F] FDG PET for assessment of tumor extension in primary gastric non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) was studied in 8 patients (6 high-grade and 2 low-grade, one of the MALT type) and in a control group of 7 patients (5 patients with NHL without clinical signs of gastric involvement, 1 patient with NHL and benign gastric ulcer and 1 patient with adenocarcinoma of the stomach). All patients with gastric NHL and the two with benign gastric ulcer and adenocarcinoma, respectively, underwent endoscopy including multiple biopsies for histopathological diagnosis. All patients with high-grade and one of the two with low-grade NHL and the patient with adenocarcinoma displayed high gastric uptake of [18F] FDG corresponding to the pathological findings at endoscopy and/or CT. No pathological tracer uptake was seen in the patient with low-grade gastric NHL of the MALT type. In 6/8 patients with gastric NHL, [18F] FDG PET demonstrated larger tumor extension in the stomach than was found at endoscopy, and there was high tracer uptake in the stomach in two patients who were evaluated as normal on CT. [18F] FDG PET correctly excluded gastric NHL in the patient with a benign gastric ulcer and in the patients with NHL without clinical signs of gastric involvement. Although the experience is as yet limited, [18F] FDG PET affords a novel possibility for evaluation of gastric NHL and would seem valuable as a complement to endoscopy and CT in selected patients, where the technique can yield additional information decisive for the choice of therapy.