Thyroid Cancer - 71-year-old female

Clinical History
71-year-old female was referred for a PET/CT scan for primary staging of thyroid cancer.

Imaging Findings
NUCLEAR MEDICINE PET/CT
STATED REASON FOR REQUEST: Staging thyroid cancer
RADIOPHARMACEUTICAL ADMINISTERED: 11 mCi ¹⁸F FDG IV.
TECHNIQUE: Emission scanning from the neck through the pelvis was obtained approximately 90 minutes post injection, with a reduced scan time of 1 minute per PET bed position.



PET/CT FINDINGS: The PET/CT study showed a large hypermetabolic neck mass with multiple necrotic areas. There were multiple tracer avid metastases in the vertebrae, pelvis, and ribs, as well as in lungs, Iliac nodes and paravertebral muscle.

Discussion
The high image quality, even with a reduced scan time of 1 minute per bed position, improved the delineation of small lesions in the vertebral pedicle, lung, pelvis and ribs, as well as the necrotic areas within the primary thyroid mass. This aided the physician in correctly staging the patient and guided therapeutic decisions.

Data courtesy of University of Tennessee Medical Center, Knoxville, TN, USA

* Any of the protocols presented herein are for informational purposes and are not meant to substitute for clinician judgment in how best to use any medical devices. It is the clinician that makes all diagnostic determinations based upon education, learning and experience.