Key result
18FDG PET/CT successfully identified a tumor thrombus in the left renal vein arising from an adrenal metastasis of lung cancer, which was subsequently confirmed by contrast-enhanced CT and biopsy.
Case Report (n=1)
18FDG PET/CT can be a useful imaging modality for diagnosing tumor thrombus in oncological patients.
May aid 18FDG PET/CT detection of tumor thrombus in select cases; hypothesis-generating and requires prospective validation.
Tumor thrombus is a rare complication of solid cancer. The authors report a case of a 76-year-old woman presenting a thick walled cystic mass in the lower lobe of the left lung. 18FDG positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) was performed, showing tracer accumulation in the wall of the pulmonary lesion and in the mediastinal and hilar lymph nodes. Moreover, PET/CT depicted a gross mass in the left adrenal gland and a hypermetabolic focus corresponding to the anatomic location of the left renal vein. Contrast-enhanced CT, subsequently performed, confirmed PET findings in the lung, lymph nodes, and adrenal glands, also demonstrating marginal enhancement and intraluminal filling defect in the left renal vein, which was interpreted as tumor thrombus due to the 18FDG uptake at PET scan. CT-guided biopsy of the mass was positive for poorly differentiated carcinoma. 18FDG PET can be useful to diagnose tumor thrombus in oncological patients.
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
Filippi et al. (2014) conducted a case report in Lung cancer with adrenal metastasis and tumor thrombus (n=1). 18FDG PET/CT was evaluated on Detection of tumor thrombus. 18FDG PET/CT successfully identified a tumor thrombus in the left renal vein arising from an adrenal metastasis of lung cancer, which was subsequently confirmed by contrast-enhanced CT and biopsy.
Synapse has enriched 5 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context: