Fluorine-18-fluorodeoxyglucose uptake in a benign oesophageal leiomyoma: a potential pitfall in diagnosis.

Positron-emission tomography scans (PET) with fluorine-18-fluorodeoxyglucose ((18)F- FDG) are usually negative in leiomyomas. Two patients underwent a PET that showed an increased (18)F- FDG uptake of the distal oesophagus suggestive for malignancy. Both patients were operated on and histologic examination revealed a benign leiomyoma in both cases. We conclude that oesophageal leiomyomas are a potential cause of a false-positive PET. A high level of caution is needed in these diagnostically challenging cases to prevent unnecessary surgical procedures.

[1]  K. Han,et al.  Surgical management of the esophageal leiomyoma: lessons from a retrospective review. , 2011, Diseases of the esophagus : official journal of the International Society for Diseases of the Esophagus.

[2]  K. Miyoshi,et al.  Abnormal fluorine-18-fluorodeoxyglucose uptake in benign esophageal leiomyoma , 2009, General thoracic and cardiovascular surgery.

[3]  D. Kim,et al.  18F-Fluorodeoxyglucose PET/CT in a Patient with Esophageal and Genital Leiomyomatosis , 2009, Korean journal of radiology.

[4]  M. Forsting,et al.  Gastrointestinal 18F-FDG accumulation on PET without a corresponding CT abnormality is not an early indicator of cancer development , 2009, European Radiology.

[5]  M. Miyagawa,et al.  Incidence and characteristics of uterine leiomyomas with FDG uptake , 2008, Annals of nuclear medicine.

[6]  S. Bae,et al.  Esophageal Leiomyoma with intense FDG uptake on 18F-FDG PET/CT , 2008 .

[7]  A. Fischman,et al.  Visual PET/CT scoring for nonspecific 18F-FDG uptake in the differentiation of early malignant and benign esophageal lesions. , 2008, AJR. American journal of roentgenology.

[8]  T. Akhurst,et al.  Esophageal leiomyoma: a rare cause of false-positive FDG scans. , 2006, Clinical nuclear medicine.

[9]  G. V. von Schulthess,et al.  Significance of incidental 18F-FDG accumulations in the gastrointestinal tract in PET/CT: correlation with endoscopic and histopathologic results. , 2004, Journal of nuclear medicine : official publication, Society of Nuclear Medicine.

[10]  J. Luketich,et al.  Minimally invasive techniques for resection of benign esophageal tumors. , 2003, Seminars in thoracic and cardiovascular surgery.