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Comparative Study
. 2021 Oct;62(10):1457-1460.
doi: 10.2967/jnumed.120.258434. Epub 2021 Feb 26.

Head-to-Head Comparison of 68Ga-NOTA (68Ga-NGUL) and 68Ga-PSMA-11 in Patients with Metastatic Prostate Cancer: A Prospective Study

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Comparative Study

Head-to-Head Comparison of 68Ga-NOTA (68Ga-NGUL) and 68Ga-PSMA-11 in Patients with Metastatic Prostate Cancer: A Prospective Study

Minseok Suh et al. J Nucl Med. 2021 Oct.

Abstract

68Ga-NOTA Glu-Urea-Lys (NGUL) is a novel prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA)-targeting tracer used for PET/CT imaging. This study aimed to compare performance in the detection of primary and metastatic lesions and to compare biodistribution between 68Ga-NGUL and 68Ga-PSMA-11 in the same patients with prostate cancer. Methods: Eleven patients with metastatic prostate cancer were prospectively recruited. The quantitative tracer uptake was determined in normal organs and in primary and metastatic lesions. Results:68Ga-NGUL showed significantly lower normal-organ uptake and rapid urinary clearance. The number and sites of detected PSMA-positive primary and metastatic lesions were identical, and no significant quantitative uptake difference was observed. 68Ga-NGUL showed a relatively lower tumor-to-background ratio than 68Ga-PSMA-11. Conclusion: In a head-to-head comparison with 68Ga-PSMA-11, 68Ga-NGUL showed lower uptake in normal organs and similar performance in detecting PSMA-avid primary and metastatic lesions. 68Ga-NGUL could be a valuable option for PSMA imaging.

Keywords: 68Ga-NGUL; 68Ga-PSMA-11; biodistribution; prostate-specific membrane antigen.

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Figures

None
Graphical abstract
FIGURE 1.
FIGURE 1.
(A) SUVmean of normal organs for 68Ga-PSMA-11 and 68Ga-NGUL. Median with interquartile range as error bar is plotted on bar chart. Wilcoxon signed-rank test for paired data was used for statistical comparison. (B) Representative image showing normal-organ distribution of 68Ga-PSMA-11 and 68Ga-NGUL. B = bladder; K = kidney; L = liver; S = spleen; SG = salivary glands; SUVbw = SUV body weight.
FIGURE 2.
FIGURE 2.
Time–activity curve of both 68Ga-PSMA-11 and 68Ga-NGUL derived from bladder region of interest.
FIGURE 3.
FIGURE 3.
(A) SUVmax of primary tumor, lymph node, and bone metastases for 68Ga-PSMA-11 and 68Ga-NGUL. (B) Tumor-to-background ratio of primary tumor, lymph node, and bone metastases for 68Ga-PSMA-11 and 68Ga-NGUL. Median with interquartile range as error bar is plotted on bar chart. Wilcoxon signed-rank test for paired data was used for statistical comparison.

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