Lack of Correlation of Hypoxic Cell Fraction and Angiogenesis with Glucose Metabolic Rate in Non–Small Cell Lung

PET offers a noninvasive means to assess neoplasms, in view of its sensitivity and accuracy in staging tumors and potentially in monitoring treatment response. The aim of this study was to evaluate newly diagnosed non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) for the presence of hypoxia, as indicated by the uptake of 18F-fluoromisonidazole (18F-FMISO), and to examine the relationship of hypoxia to the uptake of 18F-FDG, microvessel density, and other molecular markers of hypoxia. Methods: Twenty-one pa-tients with suspected or biopsy-proven NSCLC were enrolled prospectively in this study. All patients had PET studies with 18F-FMISO and 18F-FDG. Seventeen patients subsequently un-derwent surgery, with analysis performed for tumor markers of angiogenesis and hypoxia. Results: In the 17 patients with re-sectable NSCLC (13 men, 4 women; age range, 51277 y), the mean 18F-FMISO uptake in tumor was significantly lower tha