Prediction of Response to Neoadjuvant Radiotherapy in Patients With Locally Advanced Rectal Cancer by Means of Sequential 18FDG-PET

Sequential 18FDG-PET allows assessment of the response to preoperative RT. Both %ΔSUVmean and %ΔSUVmax correlate with histopathologic response and can be used to evaluate and compare the effectiveness of different neoadjuvant treatment strategies. The maximum accuracy figures and the positive predictive value figures for both Δ%SUVmean and Δ%SUVmax are, however, too low to justify modification of the standard treatment protocol of an individual patient.