Molecular Imaging in Primary Staging of Prostate Cancer Patients: Current Aspects and Future Trends Publisher



Manafifarid R¹ ; Ranjbar S² ; Araghi ZJ² ; Pilz J² ; Schweighoferzwink G² ; Pirich C² ; Beheshti M² Show Affiliations
Source: Cancers Published:2021

Abstract

Accurate primary staging is the cornerstone in all malignancies. Different morphological imaging modalities are employed in the evaluation of prostate cancer (PCa). Regardless of all developments in imaging, invasive histopathologic evaluation is still the standard method for the detection and staging of the primary PCa. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomog-raphy (CT) play crucial roles; however, functional imaging provides additional valuable infor-mation, and it is gaining ever-growing acceptance in the management of PCa. Targeted imaging with different radiotracers has remarkably evolved in the past two decades. [111In]In-capromab pendetide scintigraphy was a new approach in the management of PCa. Afterwards, positron emission tomography (PET) tracers such as [11C/18F]choline and [11C]acetate were developed. Neverthe-less, none found a role in the primary staging. By introduction of the highly sensitive small molecule prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) PET/CT, as well as recent developments in MRI and hybrid PET/MRI systems, non-invasive staging of PCa is being contemplated. Several studies in-vestigated the role of these sophisticated modalities in the primary staging of PCa, showing promising results. Here, we recapitulate the role of targeted functional imaging. We briefly mention the most popular radiotracers, their diagnostic accuracy in the primary staging of PCa, and impact on patient management. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.