Worldwide, breast cancer (BC) is the most frequent type of cancer in women yet, it is associated with relatively lower mortality rates, as it ranks fifth in cancer-related deaths overall, which is attributed to evolution in the treatment of recurrent and metastatic lesions, especially when these lesions were detected early . BC recurrence can occur even 15 years after primary treatment.
life-long routine monitoring is mandatory. Although histopathologic confirmation is the definitive diagnostic method for BC recurrence, it is not always easy to perform as in cases with deeply located or very small-size lesions, or lesion too close to organs or great vessels, making sampling either inaccessible or hazardous. BC recurrence can be assessed using morphological imaging studies or tumor markers. Mammography, ultrasound (US), computed tomography (CT), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are currently the most commonly used morphological imaging methods for detecting breast cancer recurrence. However, both of the two modalities have some restrictions. Cancer antigen 15-3 (CA 15-3) and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) are two tumor markers that are frequently used in the monitoring of BC patients . However, the findings of many studies on these markers in BC follow-up are conflicting. The introduction of integrated 2-deoxy-2-\[18 F\] fluoro-D-glucose (18FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) computed tomography (CT), known as PET/CT, has become a helpful tool for this purpose. PET/CT is the functional imaging tool that can measure increased glucose metabolism in cancer cells by using 18F-FDG. Its ability to identify tumor recurrence before detection of morphologic changes in conventional imaging reflecting its importance in detecting BC recurrence in asymptomatic patients with high tumor markers and negative results of radiological imaging. 18F-FDG PET/CT is frequently used for BC evaluation. However, data on its value in evaluating BC recurrence in patients with elevated tumor markers are limited and unclear
Study Type
OBSERVATIONAL
Enrollment
72
Patients with previous breast cancer, already treated and with clinical or biochemical suspicion of disease relapse. All patients will underwent 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET/CT. In all patients, the value of CA 15.3 was compared to PET/CT. The final diagnosis of relapse will be derived from histopathological sampling As much as possible or radiological follow up for at least 6 months will be compared with PET/CT results.
identification of recurrence
correlation between PET/CT parameters and the serum level of tumour markers in suspected recurrent BC as well as finding the best cut-off value of tumor markers that can be used in the identification of recurrence
Time frame: 2 years
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