Associations between depressive symptoms and disease progression in older patients with chronic kidney disease: results of the EQUAL study

Background Depressive symptoms are associated with adverse clinical outcomes in patients with end-stage kidney disease; however, few small studies have examined this association in patients with earlier phases of chronic kidney disease (CKD). We studied associations between baseline depressive symptoms and clinical outcomes in older patients with advanced CKD and examined whether these associations differed depending on sex. Methods CKD patients (>= 65 years; estimated glomerular filtration rate <= 20 mL/min/1.73 m(2)) were included from a European multicentre prospective cohort between 2012 and 2019. Depressive symptoms were measured by the five-item Mental Health Inventory (cut-off <= 70; 0-100 scale). Cox proportional hazard analysis was used to study associations between depressive symptoms and time to dialysis initiation, all-cause mortality and these outcomes combined. A joint model was used to study the association between depressive symptoms and kidney function over time. Analyses were adjusted for potential baseline confounders. Results Overall kidney function decline in 1326 patients was -0.12 mL/min/1.73 m(2)/month. A total of 515 patients showed depressive symptoms. No significant association was found between depressive symptoms and kidney function over time (P = 0.08). Unlike women, men with depressive symptoms had an increased mortality rate compared with those without symptoms [adjusted hazard ratio 1.41 (95% confidence interval 1.03-1.93)]. Depressive symptoms were not significantly associated with a higher hazard of dialysis initiation, or with the combined outcome (i.e. dialysis initiation and all-cause mortality). Conclusions There was no significant association between depressive symptoms at baseline and decline in kidney function over time in older patients with advanced CKD. Depressive symptoms at baseline were associated with a higher mortality rate in men

A population-based study of the clinical utility of 18F–choline PET/CT for primary metastasis staging of high-risk prostate cancer

Abstract Background The clinical utility of 18F–choline positron emission tomography fused with computed tomography (PET/CT) in all men with high-risk prostate cancer is still uncertain, because of selection of patients in previous studies. Prohibitive costs are one reason for PET/CT not being recommended for primary metastasis staging in European or American guidelines. The purpose of this retrospective study was to assess the clinical utility of in for primary metastasis staging in as complete a population as possible of men with high-risk prostate cancer. A secondary purpose was to evaluate whether a subgroup of these men could omit metastasis staging. Results In total 410 men were identified with high-risk prostate cancer. After exclusions, 317 men were initially considered for curative treatment; 213 (67%) had a choline PET/CT, with 43 men (20%) having positive findings. The risk of lymph node metastasis according to the Briganti nomogram showed a good discrimination between men with low and high risk of positive scans. Among the 35% of men with <20% risk according to the nomogram, only 1% had a positive scan, compared to 30% positive scans among the men who had higher risk. Conclusion 18F–choline PET/CT detects suspected metastases in one fifth of men with high-risk prostate cancer and should be considered for routine use. For men with <20% risk of metastasis according to the Briganti nomogram, imaging for metastasis staging might be omitted

Radiotherapy response in head and neck cancer - evaluation of the primary tumour site

Conclusion: PET-CT scans seem to be sufficient to rule out residual tumour at the primary site. Patients with positive or equivocal PET findings should be scheduled for endoscopy with biopsy or a second PET-CT scan. Objectives: Assessment of remission at the primary site, in patients treated with organ preservation therapy with curative intent, is important to identify residual tumours requiring treatment with salvage surgery. The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) after radiotherapy with or without chemotherapy in assessing primary site response in patients with head and neck cancer. Methods: A total of 82 patients, with a positive baseline PET-CT scan before start of treatment, were evaluated with a PET-CT scan 6-7 weeks post-radiotherapy and with a clinical examination/endoscopy with or without biopsy 1-2 weeks later. The majority of patients had p16-positive oropharyngeal tumours. Results: Post-treatment, 77% of the patients had no visible hypermetabolism. If equivocal PET scans are regarded as positive, the sensitivity, specificity, negative (NPV) and positive predictive value (PPV) and accuracy were 100%, 78%, 100%, 6% and 78%, respectively. Eight patients suffered from relapses involving the primary site during the 9-month follow-up

(18)F-choline PET/CT for early detection of metastases in biochemical recurrence following radical prostatectomy.

Salvage radiotherapy (SRT) for biochemical recurrence (BCR) following radical prostatectomy (RP) should if possible be added at a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level of <1-2 ng/mL. The value of positron emission tomography combined with computed tomography (PET/CT) at such low PSA values is not defined. The purpose was to determine what proportion of a well-defined cohort of hormone-naïve patients who were candidates for early salvage radiotherapy had (18)F-choline PET/CT findings suggesting metastases

Combined (18) F-fluorocholine and (18) F-fluoride positron emission tomography/computed tomography imaging for staging of high-risk prostate cancer.

Study Type - Diagnosis (cohort) Level of Evidence 2a What's known on the subject? and What does the study add? Positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) with choline and fluoride for the detection of metastases in patients with prostate cancer have each been evaluated, with mixed results. Choline PET/CT has been evaluated against pelvic lymphadenectomy, generally with a low sensitivity but a high specificity; however, the study populations have been heterogenous. Fluoride PET/CT has been evaluated against other imaging methods, such as bone scan, single photon emission CT and MRI, and has been shown to have high specificity as well as sensitivity for bone metastases, but there are no studies with biopsy verification. This is the first study that evaluates the clinical use of both choline and fluoride PET/CT on the same patients in a well-defined population of patients with high-risk prostate cancer. OBJECTIVE: • To investigate how often positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) scans, with both (18) F-fluorocholine and (18) F-fluoride as markers, add clinically relevant information for patients with prostate cancer who have high-risk tumours and a normal or inconclusive planar bone scan. PATIENTS AND METHODS: • Patients with prostate cancer with prostate specific antigen (PSA) levels between 20 and 99 ng/mL and/or Gleason score 8-10 tumours, planned for treatment with curative intent based on routine staging with a negative or inconclusive bone scan, were further investigated with a (18) F-fluorocholine and a (18) F-fluoride PET/CT. • None of the patients received hormonal therapy before the staging procedures were completed. RESULTS: • For 50 of the 90 included patients (56%) one or both PET/CT scans indicated metastases. • (18) F-fluorocholine PET/CT indicated lymph node metastases and/or bone metastases in 35 patients (39%). • (18) F-fluoride PET/CT was suggestive for bone metastases in 37 patients (41%). • In 18 patients (20%) the PET/CT scans indicated widespread metastases, leading to a change in therapy intent from curative to non-curative. • Of the patients with positive scans, 74% had Gleason score 8-10 tumours. Of the patients with Gleason score 8-10 tumours, 64% had positive scans. CONCLUSIONS: • PET/CT scans with (18) F-fluorocholine and (18) F-fluoride commonly detect metastases in patients with high-risk prostate cancer and a negative or inconclusive bone scan. • For 20% of the patients the results of the PET/CT scans changed the treatment plan

[(18)F]Fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography response evaluation can predict histological response at surgery after induction chemotherapy for oligometastatic bladder cancer.

To access publisher's full text version of this article click on the hyperlink belowPatients with limited metastatic and locally advanced bladder cancer have a poor prognosis, and no definite treatment recommendations exist. However, long-term survival is possible for selected patients if surgery is combined with multiple courses of chemotherapy (i.e. induction chemotherapy). Patients with tumours that are insensitive to chemotherapy probably have little to gain from subsequent extensive surgery. The aim of this study was to evaluate sequential FDG-PET/CT examinations as an indicator of chemotherapy response.Between 2007 and 2015, 50 patients with oligometastatic invasive bladder cancer selected for induction chemotherapy underwent two FDG-PET/CT examinations: the first before the start of chemotherapy and the second after three courses of cisplatinum-based combination chemotherapy. Responders were given up to six courses of chemotherapy. FDG-PET/CT response was correlated with histological response in excised lymph-node metastases.Three patients showed progression to incurable disease during chemotherapy and another two patients did not undergo surgery, for medical reasons. Lymphadenectomy was performed in the remaining 45 patients, of whom 43 had lymph-node metastasis. FDG-PET/CT prediction of the histological nodal chemotherapy response was correct in 37 (86%) of those 43. The second FDG-PET/CT examination identified four out of nine non-responders. For response, the sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values for FDG-PET/CT accuracy were 37 out of 37 (100%), one out of six (17%), 37 out of 42 (88%) and one out of one (100%), respectively.Repeated FDG-PET/CT seems to predict histological response. However, with the histological response criteria used in this study, five non-responders were not identified by the second FDG-PET/CT investigation.Swedish Cancer Society Gunnar Nilsson Cancer Research Trust Fund Hillevi Fries Research Fund Gorthon Research Fund Skane University Hospital Research Fund Lund University Medical Faculty (ALF

Complete metabolic response with [18F]fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography predicts survival following induction chemotherapy and radical cystectomy in clinically lymph node positive bladder cancer

Objective: To determine whether repeated [18F]fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography (FDG-PET-CT) scans can predict increased cancer-specific survival (CSS) after induction chemotherapy followed by radical cystectomy (RC). Patients and Methods: Between 2007 and 2018, 86 patients with clinically lymph node (LN)-positive bladder cancer (T1–T4, N1–N3, M0–M1a) were included and underwent a repeated FDG-PET-CT during cisplatin-based induction chemotherapy. The 71 patients that had a response to chemotherapy underwent RC. Response to chemotherapy was evaluated in LNs through repeated FDG-PET-CT and stratified as partial response or complete response using three different methods: maximum standardised uptake value (SUVmax), adapted Deauville criteria, and total lesion glycolysis (TLG). Progression-free survival (PFS) and CSS were analysed for all three methods by Cox regression analysis. Results: After a median follow-up of 40 months, 15 of the 71 patients who underwent RC had died from bladder cancer. Using SUVmax and the adapted Deauville criteria, multivariable Cox regression analyses adjusting for age, clinical tumour stage and LN stage showed that complete response was associated with increased PFS (hazard ratio [HR] 3.42, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.20–9.77) and CSS (HR 3.30, 95% CI 1.02–10.65). Using TLG, a complete response was also associated with increased PFS (HR 5.17, 95% CI 1.90–14.04) and CSS (HR 6.32, 95% CI 2.06–19.41). Conclusions: Complete metabolic response with FDG-PET-CT predicts survival after induction chemotherapy followed by RC in patients with LN-positive bladder cancer and comprises a novel tool in evaluating response to chemotherapy before surgery. This strategy has the potential to tailor treatment in individual patients by identifying significant response to chemotherapy, which motivates the administration of a full course of induction chemotherapy with a higher threshold for suspending treatment due to toxicity and side-effects

Comparison of conventional and Si-photomultiplier-based PET systems for image quality and diagnostic performance

BACKGROUND: A new generation of positron emission tomography with computed tomography (PET-CT) was recently introduced using silicon (Si) photomultiplier (PM)-based technology. Our aim was to compare the image quality and diagnostic performance of a SiPM-based PET-CT (Discovery MI; GE Healthcare, Milwaukee, WI, USA) with a time-of-flight PET-CT scanner with a conventional PM detector (Gemini TF; Philips Healthcare, Cleveland, OH, USA), including reconstruction algorithms per vendor's recommendations. METHODS: Imaging of the National Electrical Manufacturers Association IEC body phantom and 16 patients was carried out using 1.5 min/bed for the Discovery MI PET-CT and 2 min/bed for the Gemini TF PET-CT. Images were analysed for recovery coefficients for the phantom, signal-to-noise ratio in the liver, standardized uptake values (SUV) in lesions, number of lesions and metabolic TNM classifications in patients. RESULTS: In phantom, the correct (> 90%) activity level was measured for spheres ≥17 mm for Discovery MI, whereas the Gemini TF reached a correct measured activity level for the 37-mm sphere. In patient studies, metabolic TNM classification was worse using images obtained from the Discovery MI compared those obtained from the Gemini TF in 4 of 15 patients. A trend toward more malignant, inflammatory and unclear lesions was found using images acquired with the Discovery MI compared with the Gemini TF, but this was not statistically significant. Lesion-to-blood-pool SUV ratios were significantly higher in images from the Discovery MI compared with the Gemini TF for lesions smaller than 1 cm (p < 0.001), but this was not the case for larger lesions (p = 0.053). The signal-to-noise ratio in the liver was similar between platforms (p = 0.52). Also, shorter acquisition times were possible using the Discovery MI, with preserved signal-to-noise ratio in the liver. CONCLUSIONS: Image quality was better with Discovery MI compared to conventional Gemini TF. Although no gold standard was available, the results indicate that the new PET-CT generation will provide potentially better diagnostic performance