Predictive prognostic value of local and distant recurrence of F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography for pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors with reference to World Health Organization classifications (2004, 2010). Case series study

• Predictive prognostic value of PET CT scan on pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors is still under investigation.
• We studied its captation in relation with the well established hystopathological prognostic markers assessed.
• We found that PET CT scan provides a good prognostic value for pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors.

BackgroundF-flurodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) have been claimed to be an important prognostic tool in different malignancies. However, its predictive prognostic value on pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (PNETs) is still under investigation.AimWe study the prognostic impact of FDG-PET scan in neuroendocrine pancreatic tumors.MethodologyBetween 2007 and 2012, 26 patients with no metastastatic histologically confirmed PNETs (mean age: 57 years) were examined with FDG-PET. We studied its captation in relation with the well established hystopathological prognostic markers assessed in the tumoral resected specimen according to the WHO 2004 and ENETS/WHO 2010 classification.ResultsFDG-PET captation was positive in 17 cases (65.4%). The median follow-up period was 34.4 months and recurrences occurred in 4 cases (15.4%). We found a significant correlation between this captation and Ki 67 index (p = 0.032), mitotic index (p = 0.002), tumor grade (p = 0.017) and tumor size (p = 0.01).ConclusionsFDG-PET provides a good prognostic value for PNETs. Present results must be further validated with larger sample studies.