Freely Available, Fully Automated AI-Based Analysis of Primary Tumour and Metastases of Prostate Cancer in Whole-Body [F-18]-PSMA-1007 PET-CT

Here, we aimed to develop and validate a fully automated artificial intelligence (AI)-based method for the detection and quantification of suspected prostate tumour/local recurrence, lymph node metastases, and bone metastases from [F-18]PSMA-1007 positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT) images. Images from 660 patients were included. Segmentations by one expert reader were ground truth. A convolutional neural network (CNN) was developed and trained on a training set, and the performance was tested on a separate test set of 120 patients. The AI method was compared with manual segmentations performed by several nuclear medicine physicians. Assessment of tumour burden (total lesion volume (TLV) and total lesion uptake (TLU)) was performed. The sensitivity of the AI method was, on average, 79% for detecting prostate tumour/recurrence, 79% for lymph node metastases, and 62% for bone metastases. On average, nuclear medicine physicians\u27 corresponding sensitivities were 78%, 78%, and 59%, respectively. The correlations of TLV and TLU between AI and nuclear medicine physicians were all statistically significant and ranged from R = 0.53 to R = 0.83. In conclusion, the development of an AI-based method for prostate cancer detection with sensitivity on par with nuclear medicine physicians was possible. The developed AI tool is freely available for researchers

Discriminative accuracy of [18F]flortaucipir positron emission tomography for Alzheimer disease vs other neurodegenerative disorders

IMPORTANCE The positron emission tomography (PET) tracer [18F]flortaucipir allows in vivo quantification of paired helical filament tau, a core neuropathological feature of Alzheimer disease (AD), but its diagnostic utility is unclear. OBJECTIVE To examine the discriminative accuracy of [18F]flortaucipir for AD vs non-AD neurodegenerative disorders. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS In this cross-sectional study, 719 participantswere recruited from 3 dementia centers in South Korea, Sweden, and the United States between June 2014 and November 2017 (160 cognitively normal controls, 126 patients with mild cognitive impairment [MCI], of whom 65.9% were amyloid-β [Aβ] positive [ie, MCI due to AD], 179 patients with AD dementia, and 254 patients with various non-AD neurodegenerative disorders). EXPOSURES The index testwas the [18F]flortaucipir PET standardized uptake value ratio (SUVR) in 5 predefined regions of interest (ROIs). Cut points for tau positivitywere determined using the mean +2 SDs observed in controls and Youden Index for the contrastADdementia vs controls. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The reference standardwas the clinical diagnosis determined at the specialized memory centers. In the primary analysis, the discriminative accuracy (ie, sensitivity and specificity) of [18F]flortaucipir was examined for AD dementia vs all non-AD neurodegenerative disorders. In secondary analyses, the area under the curve (AUC) of [18F]flortaucipir SUVR was compared with 3 established magnetic resonance imaging measures (hippocampal volumes and AD signature and whole-brain cortical thickness), and sensitivity and specificity of [18F]flortaucipir in MCI due to AD vs non-AD neurodegenerative disorders were determined. RESULTS Among 719 participants, the overall mean (SD) age was 68.8 (9.2) years and 48.4% were male. The proportions of patients who were amyloid-β positive were 26.3%, 65.9%, 100%, and 23.8% among cognitively normal controls, patients with MCI, patients with AD dementia, and patients with non-AD neurodegenerative disorders, respectively. [18F]flortaucipir uptake in the medial-basal and lateral temporal cortex showed 89.9% (95% CI, 84.6%-93.9%) sensitivity and 90.6%(95%CI, 86.3%-93.9%) specificity using the threshold based on controls (SUVR, 1.34), and 96.8%(95%CI, 92.0%-99.1%) sensitivity and 87.9% (95%CI, 81.9%-92.4%) specificity using the Youden Index-derived cutoff (SUVR, 1.27) for distinguishing AD dementia from all non-AD neurodegenerative disorders. The AUCs for all 5 [18F]flortaucipir ROIs were higher (AUC range, 0.92-0.95) compared with the 3 volumetric MRI measures (AUC range, 0.63-0.75; all ROIs P < .001). Diagnostic performance of the 5 [18F]flortaucipir ROIs were lower in MCI due to AD (AUC range, 0.75-0.84). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE Among patients with established diagnoses at a memory disorder clinic, [18F]flortaucipir PET was able to discriminate AD from other neurodegenerative diseases. The accuracy and potential utility of this test in patient care require further research in clinically more representative populations

The \u3b1-synuclein PET tracer [18F] ACI-12589 distinguishes multiple system atrophy from other neurodegenerative diseases

Abstract: A positron emission tomography (PET) tracer detecting alpha-synuclein pathology will improve the diagnosis, and ultimately the treatment of alpha-synuclein-related diseases. Here we show that the PET ligand, [18F]ACI-12589, displays good in vitro affinity and specificity for pathological alpha-synuclein in tissues from patients with different alpha-synuclein-related disorders including Parkinson's disease (PD) and Multiple-System Atrophy (MSA) using autoradiography and radiobinding techniques. In the initial clinical evaluation we include 23 participants with alpha-synuclein related disorders, 11 with other neurodegenerative disorders and eight controls. In vivo [18F]ACI-12589 demonstrates clear binding in the cerebellar white matter and middle cerebellar peduncles of MSA patients, regions known to be highly affected by alpha-synuclein pathology, but shows limited binding in PD. The binding statistically separates MSA patients from healthy controls and subjects with other neurodegenerative disorders, including other synucleinopathies. Our results indicate that alpha-synuclein pathology in MSA can be identified using [18F]ACI-12589 PET imaging, potentially improving the diagnostic work-up of MSA and allowing for detection of drug target engagement in vivo of novel alpha-synuclein targeting therapies. A PET tracer for alpha-synuclein would help diagnosis and treatment of alpha-syn-related diseases. Here the authors show that ACI-12589 shows an uptake in the cerebellar white matter in patients with multiple-system atrophy