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. 2013 Mar-Apr;14(2):337-42.
doi: 10.3348/kjr.2013.14.2.337. Epub 2013 Feb 22.

FDG PET or PET/CT in evaluation of renal angiomyolipoma

Chun-Yi Lin  1 , Hui-Yi Chen, Hueisch-Jy Ding, Kuo-Yang Yen, Chia-Hung Kao
Affiliations

FDG PET or PET/CT in evaluation of renal angiomyolipoma

Chun-Yi Lin et al. Korean J Radiol. 2013 Mar-Apr.

Abstract

Objective: Angiomyolipoma is the most common benign kidney tumor. However, literature describing FDG PET findings on renal angiomyolipoma (AML) is limited. This study reports the FDG PET and PET/CT findings of 21 cases of renal AML.

Materials and methods: The study reviews FDG PET and PET/CT images of 21 patients diagnosed with renal AML. The diagnosis is based on the classical appearance of an AML on CT scan with active surveillance for 6 months. The study is focused on the observation of clinical and radiographic features.

Results: Six men and 15 women were included in our study. The mean age of the patients was 57.14 ± 9.67 years old. The mean diameter of 21 renal AML on CT scans was 1.76 ± 1.00 cm (Min: 0.6 cm; Max: 4.4 cm). CT scans illustrated renal masses typical of AMLs, and the corresponding FDG PET scans showed minimal FDG activities in the area of the tumors. None of the 21 AMLs showed a maximum standardized uptake value (SUV(max)) greater than 1.98. No statistically significant correlation was present between SUV(max) and tumor size.

Conclusion: Renal AMLs demonstrate very low to low uptake on FDG PET and PET/CT imaging in this study. When a fat-containing tumor in the kidney is found on a CT scan, it is critical to differentiate an AML from a malignant tumor including an RCC, liposarcoma, and Wilms tumor. This study suggests that FDG PET or PET/CT imaging is useful for differentiating a renal AML from a fat-containing malignant tumor.

Keywords: Computed tomography; Fluorine-18 fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose; Positron emission tomography; Renal angiomylipoma.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
58-year-old hepatoma male patient with liver cirrhosis with massive ascites and angiomyolipoma (AML) in left kidney received whole body FDG PET/CT for detecting extrahepatic metastases (patient no. 10 in Table 1). Uptake of 18F-FDG in renal AML was lower than that of spine (arrows).
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
59-year-old female patient with angiomyolipoma (AML) in right kidney (patient no. 19 in Table 1). Uptake of 18F-FDG in renal AML was higher than that of spine but lower than hepatic activity (arrows).
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
30-year-old male with renal cell carcinoma in right kidney (arrows). Maximum standardized uptake value on FDG PET is 5.43.
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
58-year-old male with renal cell carcinoma in right kidney (arrows). Maximum standardized uptake value on FDG PET is 1.88.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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