[Fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography imaging of carcinoma of cardia or fundus of stomach].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the value of fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG)-positron emission tomography (PET) in carcinoma of cardia or fundus of stomach. METHODS: From April 1999 to April 2005, 57 patients with carcinoma of cardia or fundus of stomach were imaged with FDG-PET. FDG-PET imaging were analyzed by visual method combined with semiquantitative analysis. The results were compared with pathological findings and follow-up results. RESULTS: In 29 untreated patients, 25 T(2) to T(4) tumors were all FDG avid and 4 T(1) cases showed nothing abnormal at the primary site. In 24 patients performed curative operation 40 resected enlarged lymph nodes beyond 1 cm were diagnosed correctly by FDG-PET. FDG-PET revealed distant metastases in 5 patients and corrected them from curative surgery candidates to late stage. In 28 treated patients FDG-PET confirmed 22 cases with recurrence or metastasis. CONCLUSIONS: FDG-PET has limited value in confirming T stage in carcinoma of cardia or fundus of stomach. It showed potential in N and M staging and predicting treatment response.