Medicare-Approved Indications for PET in Oncology
| Tumor type | Initial treatment strategy | Subsequent treatment strategy |
| Colorectal | Covered | Covered |
| Esophagus | Covered | Covered |
| Head and neck (not thyroid or central nervous system) | Covered | Covered |
| Lymphoma | Covered | Covered |
| Non–small cell lung | Covered | Covered |
| Ovary | Covered | Covered |
| Brain | Covered | CED |
| Cervix | Covered with exception* | Covered |
| Small cell lung | Covered | CED |
| Soft-tissue sarcoma | Covered | CED |
| Pancreas | Covered | CED |
| Testis | Covered | CED |
| Breast (female and male) | Covered with exception† | Covered |
| Melanoma | Covered with exception‡ | Covered |
| Prostate | Not covered | CED |
| Thyroid | Covered | Covered with exception or CED§ |
| All other solid tumors | Covered | CED |
| Myeloma | Covered | Covered |
| All other cancers not listed | CED | CED |
↵* Cervical cancer nationally not covered for initial diagnosis.
↵† Breast cancer nationally not covered for initial diagnosis or staging of axillary lymph nodes.
↵‡ Melanoma nationally not covered for initial staging of regional lymph nodes.
↵§ Thyroid cancer nationally covered for subsequent treatment strategy for recurrent or residual thyroid cancer of follicular cell origin, previously treated by thyroidectomy and radioiodine ablation, with serum thyroglobulin level of greater than 10 ng/mL, and negative 131I whole-body scan results.
CED = coverage with evidence development.
(Adapted from (55).)