The role of PET/CT investigation in the management of patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is the most common type of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). Although this lymphoma is curable, 40% of patients with DLBCL will die of relapsed or refractory disease. 18F-Fluoro-deoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) is a noninvasive, 3-dimensional, functional imaging modality. When combined with the anatomical imaging tool computed tomography (CT), PET/CT can differentiate among others necrotic masses and viable tumors. PET scan has become a basic clinical tool for staging and response assessment in aggressive lymphomas, such as DLBCL. It has been evaluated in pretreatment staging, restaging, monitoring during therapy, post-therapy surveillance and assessment of transformation. Based on the preliminary results of several studies FDG-PET scans play an important role in the early assessment of treatment response, in planning of the treatment including radiation therapy and in the estimation of prognosis.