Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia-Related False-Positive of Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen-Positron Emission Tomography in the Diagnosis of Prostate Cancer: The Achilles' Heel of Biopsy-Free Radical Prostatectomy?

Abstract

Purpose: Radical prostatectomy is one of the primary treatments for localized clinically significant prostate cancer. Generally, its application is based on prior biopsy. PSMA (prostate-specific membrane antigen)-PET (positron emission tomography) is considered promising in biopsy-free radical prostatectomy. The expression of PSMA in benign prostatic hyperplasia tissue and corresponding positive reaction are crucial concerns for a no-biopsy strategy. Currently, no study has explored the benign prostatic hyperplasia-related false-positive of PSMA-PET in the detection of prostate cancer. Furthermore, the influence of maximum standardized uptake value and Prostate Imaging Reporting & Data System on biopsy-free radical prostatectomy is also poorly characterized.

Materials and methods: A retrospective study was conducted on patients who received PSMA-PET because of clinical suspicion of prostate cancer and were confirmed to have benign prostatic hyperplasia or prostate cancer. The receiver operating characteristic curve was generated for maximum standardized uptake value. Results of interest were the false-positive rate of PSMA-PET and the efficacy of maximum standardized uptake value or multiparametric MRI in excluding false-positives.

Results: The benign prostatic hyperplasia-related false-positive rate of PSMA-PET in detecting prostate cancer was 30%. Maximum standardized uptake value could effectively exclude benign prostatic hyperplasia and Grade Group 1 patients with an area under the curve of 0.86; the optimal maximum standardized uptake value cutoff value with 100% specificity was 15, with a sensitivity of 41%. Notably, the sensitivity and specificity of stringent PET score and Prostate Imaging Reporting & Data System criteria (both ≥4) in diagnosing clinically significant prostate cancer were 49% and 100%, respectively.

Conclusions: Our findings revealed benign prostatic hyperplasia-related false-positive rate of PSMA-PET and provided a preliminary reference in biopsy-free radical prostatectomy.

Keywords: biopsy; false positive reactions; positron emission tomography computed tomography; prostatectomy; prostatic neoplasms.