Methionine PET Findings in the Diagnosis of Brain Tumors and Non-Tumorous Mass Lesions: A Single-Center Report on 426 Cases

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Differentiating between a brain tumor and a non-tumorous lesion remains a significant diagnostic challenge, particularly when conventional imaging modalities such as CT and MRI provide inconclusive results. While MET–PET has shown potential in neuro-oncology, its diagnostic performance across a broad spectrum of brain pathologies has not been comprehensively evaluated. This study therefore assessed the sensitivity, specificity, and uptake patterns of MET–PET in a large cohort of brain lesions.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: This single-center retrospective study analyzed 426 consecutive patients with undiagnosed brain lesions who underwent MET–PET imaging between January 2019 and May 2024. TNRs were calculated using a threshold of 1.5 for positive findings. Histological diagnoses were established based on the World Health Organization 2021 criteria, IDH mutation status and 1p/19q-codeletion.

RESULTS: Among the cohort, 342 cases (67.8%) were confirmed as having tumorous lesions, 76 (17.8%) as having non-tumorous lesions, and 61 (14.3%) remained undiagnosed. MET–PET exhibited high sensitivity (86.2%) but limited specificity (47.4%) for tumor detection. In multiple sclerosis cases, MET–PET showed a remarkably high positivity rate (n = 10/12) that was significantly higher than for other non-tumorous lesions. In terms of tumors, IDH-wildtype glioblastomas had significantly higher TNRs compared to IDH-mutant gliomas, while oligodendrogliomas had higher TNRs compared to astrocytomas, in which TNR values correlated with tumor grade.

CONCLUSIONS: MET–PET demonstrated robust sensitivity for brain tumor detection, but was limited by low specificity due to false positives in inflammatory conditions and false negatives for low-grade tumors. These findings imply the importance of integrating MET–PET with other imaging modalities to enhance diagnostic accuracy.

ABBREVIATIONS: MET–PET＝¹¹C-methionine positron emission tomography; TNR＝Tumor/normal region ratio; IDH＝isocitrate dehydrogenase.