FDG-PET in Follicular Lymphoma Management

Abstract EN

18-Fluoro-deoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computerised tomography (FDG PET/CT) is commonly used in the management of patients with lymphomas and is recommended for both initial staging and response assessment after treatment in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma and Hodgkin lymphoma.

Despite the FDG avidity of follicular lymphoma (FL), FDG PET/CT is not yet applied in standard clinical practice for patients with FL.

However, FDG PET/CT is more accurate than conventional imaging for initial staging, often prompting significant management change, and allows noninvasive characterization to guide assessment of high-grade transformation.

For restaging, FDG PET/CT assists in distinguishing between scar tissue and viable tumors in residual masses and a positive PET after induction treatment would seem to predict a shorter progression-free survival.