Peptide-Based Probes for Cancer Imaging

¹ University of Berne, Berne, Switzerland
² University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: reubi{at}pathology.unibe.ch.

	Abstract

Receptors for regulatory peptides are overexpressed in a variety of human cancers. They represent the molecular basis for in vivo imaging with radiolabeled peptide probes. Somatostatin-derived tracers, designed to image the sst₂-overexpressing neuroendocrine tumors, have enjoyed almost 2 decades of successful development and extensive clinical applications. More recent developments include second- and third-generation somatostatin analogs, with a broader receptor subtype profile or with antagonistic properties. Emerging tracers for other peptide receptors, including cholecystokinin/gastrin and GLP-1 analogs for neuroendocrine tumors, bombesin and neuropeptide-Y analogs for prostate or breast cancers, or Arg-Gly-Asp peptides for neoangiogenesis labeling, are also in current development. Application fields include both SPECT/CT and PET/CT.

Key Words: PET/CT, peptide-based probes, SPECT/CT, cholecystokinin/gastrin, somatostatin analogs

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