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Alteration of Gallium-67 Distribution in Tumor-Bearing Mice Following Treatment with Methotrexate: Concise Communication

Bowman Gray School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina

Correspondence: For reprints contact: Richard L. Witcofski, PhD, Dept. of Radiology, Bowman Gray School of Medicine, 300 S. Hawthorne Rd., Winston-Salem, NC 27103.

ABSTRACT

The effect of methotrexate (MTX) treatment upon Ga-67 distribution was investigated. Tumor bearing mice were injected with Ga-67 citrate at varying time intervals following MTX treatment administered either as a single dose or in multiple doses. Altered Ga-67 distribution was observed following MTX therapy, the general pattern showing decreased levels in blood and increased uptake in bone. MTX therapy decreased Ga-67 uptake in liver, tumor,and muscle. The effects of MTX are related to the dose and time interval between the administrations of MTX and Ga-67. The serum of MTX-treated mice had lower unsaturated iron-binding capacities and higher levels of unbound Ga-67. Serum iron and iron binding in rats determined 20 hr after MTX therapy showed significantly higher levels of serum iron and lower levels of Ga-67 in blood, and the percent transferrin saturation was approximately 95%. These observations suggest that MTX inhibition of erythropoiesis elevates serum iron levels and decreases the availability of gallium-binding sites in serum, resulting in altered Ga-67 tissue distribution.