Assessment of postoperative local and distant recurrence in colorectal cancer patients: Comparison between PET/CT and CECT

ObjectiveTo assess the diagnostic performance of 18F-FDG PET/CT scan in the detection of recurrent disease in CRC patients who have suspected local and/or distant recurrent disease compared to contrast enhanced CT scan (CECT).Material and method96 CRC treated patients with suspected recurrence were examined by CECT and 18F-FDG PET/CT. Pathological results, clinical or imaging follow-up, or the responsiveness of the lesion to the treatment with chemotherapy or radiation therapy were reviewed for gold standard.ResultsRecurrent or metastatic disease was found in 74 (77.1%) of 96 patients. Calculated sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of 18F-FDG PET/CT were 92%, 72.7%, and 88.5%. The specificity of 18F-FDG PET/CT was statistically significantly better than that of CECT as it can reduce the false positive results of CECT in 13 patients, however regarding the sensitivity.18F-FDG PET/CT showed better value but without statistical significance.Conclusion18F-FDG PET/CT is a better method to evaluate postoperative CRC patients with suspected tumor recurrence or distant metastasis than CT with significantly higher specificity.