Abstract
18F-FDG PET/CT for staging Hodgkin lymphoma may allow for accurate and reliable assessment of the metabolic tumor volume (MTV) as a baseline risk factor. Our aim was to analyze the prognostic impact of MTV measurements obtained by different means in advanced-stage Hodgkin lymphoma patients treated within the German Hodgkin Study Group HD18 trial. Methods: Within HD18, 310 patients underwent 18F-FDG PET/CT scanning for staging, which was available to the central review panel for quantitative analysis. We calculated the MTV by 4 different thresholding methods and performed receiver-operating-characteristic analysis to evaluate the potential for prediction of early response determined by PET after 2 cycles (PET-2) of dose-escalated bleomycin, etoposide, doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, vincristine, procarbazine, and prednisone (eBEACOPP). Logistic regression was used to evaluate its prognostic value concerning progression-free survival and overall survival. Results: All of the different MTV calculations predicted PET-2 response to a moderate and comparable degree (area under the curve, 0.62–0.63; P = 0.01–0.06). With none of the measuring methods did the receiver-operating-characteristic curves point to any unique cutoffs; rather, a wide range of possible cutoffs was indicated. None of the MTV measurements was prognostic for progression-free survival (hazard ratio, 1.2–1.5; P = 0.15–0.52) or overall survival (hazard ratio, 1.0–1.5; P = 0.95–0.27). Conclusion: Baseline MTV as determined by different means is a predictive factor for early response to eBEACOPP after 2 cycles. However, value as a prognostic factor after a highly effective PET-2–adapted treatment strategy could not be observed.
- PET/CT
- Hodgkin lymphoma
- metabolic tumor volume
- response prediction
- progression-free survival
- overall survival
Footnotes
Published online Jun. 7, 2018.
- © 2019 by the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging.