Uptake of prostate-specific membrane antigen-targeted 18F-DCFPyL in avascular necrosis of the femoral head

Gonzalo Torga; Yafu Yin; Martin G. Pomper; Kenneth J. Pienta; Michael A. Gorin; Steven P. Rowe

doi:10.4103/wjnm.wjnm_106_18

World Journal of Nuclear Medicine, Table of Contents

CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · World J Nucl Med 2019; 18(04): 416-419
DOI: 10.4103/wjnm.wjnm_106_18

Case Report

Uptake of prostate-specific membrane antigen-targeted ¹⁸F-DCFPyL in avascular necrosis of the femoral head

Authors

Gonzalo Torga

¹Department of Urology, The James Buchanan Brady Urological Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Yafu Yin

¹Department of Urology, The James Buchanan Brady Urological Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

²Department of Nuclear Medicine, The First Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, China

³Department of Nuclear Medicine, Xinhua Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
Martin G. Pomper

¹Department of Urology, The James Buchanan Brady Urological Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

⁴The Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Kenneth J. Pienta

¹Department of Urology, The James Buchanan Brady Urological Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Michael A. Gorin

¹Department of Urology, The James Buchanan Brady Urological Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

⁴The Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Steven P. Rowe

¹Department of Urology, The James Buchanan Brady Urological Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

⁴The Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

Abstract

In recent years, the emergence of prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA)-targeted positron-emission tomography (PET) imaging has brought about a paradigm shift in the way that prostate cancer (PCa) is imaged in many parts of the world. Although PSMA-targeted PET imaging has been demonstrated to be a highly sensitive and specific imaging modality for the identification of sites of PCa, its clinical utility hinges on the ability of imaging specialists and their clinical colleagues to recognize potential false-positive sources of uptake and to tailor therapy based on that recognition. In this manuscript, we report the case of a 74-year-old male with a history of recurrent PCa who was referred for a restaging PSMA-targeted ¹⁸F-DCFPyL PET/computed tomography (PET/CT). PET images demonstrated low level but focal and definitive uptake in the left femoral head. This uptake corresponded to sclerotic changes on CT whose morphology was most compatible with avascular necrosis without femoral head collapse. In the presented case, the integrated assessment of the CT imaging together with the PET findings was fundamental to avoid misinterpretation of the left femur finding as metastatic disease, which would have ultimately altered the clinical management of the patient.

Keywords

¹⁸F-DCFPyL - avascular necrosis - positron-emission tomography/computed tomography - prostate cancer - prostate-specific membrane antigen

Full Text

References

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