Comparison of 18F-FDG-PET/CT and 18F-FDG-PET/MR imaging in oncology: a systematic review.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to systematically review the literature to evaluate the clinical performance of integrated 18F-FDG PET/MR as compared with 18F-FDG PET/CT in oncologic imaging.

METHODS: The literature was searched using MEDLINE and EMBASE via OVID. Studies comparing the diagnostic accuracy of integrated 18F-FDG PET/MR and 18F-FDG PET/CT in the diagnosis, staging/restaging, assessment of treatment response, or evaluation of metastasis in patients with suspected or diagnosed cancers were deemed eligible for inclusion. Risk of bias and applicability concerns were assessed using the QUADAS-2 tool.

RESULTS: Twenty studies met the inclusion criteria. The overall quality of the studies was rated favorably with bias or applicability concerns in a few studies. Our review suggests that 18F-FDG PET/MR performs comparably to 18F-FDG PET/CT in the detection of local lymph node and distant metastases and superiorly in determining the local extent of tumor. SUV obtained from 18F-FDG PET/MR correlated highly with those obtained from 18F-FDG PET/CT.

CONCLUSIONS: Based on early evidence, 18F-FDG PET/MR is comparable to 18F-FDG PET/CT in the clinical scenarios examined in this review. The potential for interchangeability of 18F-FDG PET/MR with 18F-FDG PET/CT will vary by indication and the body site that is being imaged, with PET scanners integrated with MRI predicted to provide greater detail in the evaluation of local tumor extent, where 18F-FDG PET/CT can be limited.