Pulmonary artery sarcoma detected on F-18 FDG PET/CT as origin of multiple spinal metastases

Clin Nucl Med. 2011 Aug;36(8):e87-9. doi: 10.1097/RLU.0b013e318217ae58.

Abstract

A 67-year-old man with back pain was diagnosed as having multiple spinal metastases on MRI. On CT scan, only a filling defect in the right pulmonary artery was observed and suspected as venous thromboembolism. On F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET/CT, intense hypermetabolism was observed in the right pulmonary artery in addition to the metastatic spine lesions. Biopsy confirmed the lesion as a primary pulmonary artery sarcoma (PAS), and the spine lesions as metastases of PAS. Although PAS is rare and its bone metastasis presenting initial symptom is extremely rare, FDG PET/CT is an effective diagnostic modality for PAS, not only in discrimination from venous thromboembolism, but also in workup of metastatic origin.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Aged
  • Fluorodeoxyglucose F18*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Positron-Emission Tomography*
  • Pulmonary Artery / diagnostic imaging
  • Pulmonary Artery / pathology*
  • Sarcoma / diagnostic imaging
  • Sarcoma / pathology*
  • Spinal Neoplasms / secondary*
  • Tomography, X-Ray Computed*
  • Vascular Neoplasms / diagnostic imaging
  • Vascular Neoplasms / pathology*

Substances

  • Fluorodeoxyglucose F18