Additional PET/CT Tracer to Detect Prostate Cancer

Researchers have identified a second radiopharmaceutical that nuclear medicine departments can keep in mind when staging prostate cancer.

According to a study published in the April issue of the Journal of Nuclear Medicine, investigators in Israel determined ¹⁸fluorine prostate-specific membrane antigen-1007 (¹⁸F-PMSA-1007) can accurately pinpoint malignant prostate cancer lesions.

The team, led by Einat Evan-Sapir, M.D., Ph.D., from Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, said this additional radiopharmaceutical likely has a longer half-life and better spatial resolution than ⁶⁸gallium-PSMA-11 (⁶⁸Ga-PMSA-11). According to the study details, ¹⁸F-PMSA-1007’s half-life is 110 minutes, and ⁶⁸Ga-PMSA-11’s is 68 minutes. ⁶⁸Ga-PSMA-11 also emits a higher-energy positron. 

To determine efficacy, the team compared how well ¹⁸F- PMSA-1007 diagnosed prostate cancer to how well ⁶⁸Ga-PSMA-11 performed with PET/CT scans. They evaluated 16 patients who were awaiting radical prostatectomy for newly-diagnosed intermediate- or high-risk prostate cancer. They, then, compared the outcomes with both radiopharmaceuticals with the gold standard of histopathologic findings.

Both ¹⁸F-PMSA-1007 and ⁶⁸Ga-PMSA-11 identified the same location of radiolabeled PSMA-avid lesions in the prostate. However, ¹⁸F-PMSA-1007 pinpointed additional findings in four patients – three were confirmed as prostate cancer, and one was determined to be chronic prostatitis.

The results indicate an interchangeability between the radiopharmaceuticals, the team said.

“In view of the near-equal performance of the two traces, this preliminary study suggest the routine use of ¹⁸F-PMSA-1007 in lieu of ⁶⁸Ga-PMSA-11 for staging prostate cancer patients, and clinicians can use either radiotracer based on availability,” the team wrote.