Findings from Positron Emission Tomography-Computed Tomography with 18F-Fluorodeoxyglucose Uncover a Potential Marker of Nutritional Status in Cancer Patients: A Cross-Sectional Pilot Study

Background Cancer patients often have altered nutritional status and periodically undergo imaging tests. We hypothesized that standard uptake values (SUV) by positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET/CT) with 18 F-fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) could be associated with the nutritional status of cancer patients.Materials and Methods Adult cancer patients who underwent clinical evaluation and PET/CT with 18 F-FDG on the same day were included in a cross-sectional pilot study. The focus was on evaluating 18 F-FDG findings with regard to nutritional status, with an emphasis on liver SUVmean and tumor SUVmax.Results A total of 179 patients were evaluated. One hundred and three (57.5%) were classified as well-nourished, 54 (30.1%) as suspected/moderately malnourished, and 22 (12.2%) as severely malnourished. The median hepatic SUVmean was 2.29, with 1.87 corresponding to the 10th percentile. There was a significant difference between the severely malnourished (2.02) and well-nourished or suspected/moderately malnourished (2.36) patients. Severely malnourished patients were more likely to have a SUVmean < 1.87 (p = .035). The tumor SUVmax also was significantly higher in severely malnourished patients (p = .003).Conclusion Cancer patients with severe malnutrition have lower values of hepatic SUVmean and higher values of tumor SUVmax in PET/CT with 18F-FDG when compared to well-nourished patients.