The usefulness of 18 F-FDG PET/CT for assessing methotrexate-associated lymphoproliferative disorder (MTX-LPD)

Background Methotrexate-associated lymphoproliferative disorder (MTX-LPD) is a benign lymphoid proliferation or malignant lymphoma in patients who have been treated with MTX. MTX withdrawal and observation for a short period should be considered in the initial management of patients who develop LPD while on MTX therapy. Here we evaluated the diagnostic accuracy and predictive value of 18 F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography ( 18 F-FDG PET/CT) for MTX-LPD. Methods We retrospectively investigated the cases of 15 patients clinically suspected of having MTX-LPD. A total of 324 anatomic regions (207 nodal and 117 extranodal regions) were assessed by 18 F-FDG PET/CT and by multi-detector row CT (MDCT). Each anatomic region was classified as either malignant or benign. The uptake of 18 F-FDG was assessed semi-quantitatively with the standardized uptake value maximum (SUVmax), the whole-body metabolic tumor volume (WBMTV), and the whole-body total lesion glycolysis (WBTLG) in order to investigate predictive factors of spontaneous regression after the withdrawal of MTX. Results MTX-LPD lesions were observed in 92/324 (28.4 %) regions. 18 F-FDG PET/CT showed 90.2 % sensitivity, 97.4 % specificity, and 95.4 % accuracy, values which were significantly higher than those of MDCT (59.8, 94.8, and 84.9 %, respectively. p < 0.002). After the withdrawal of MTX, 9/15 patients (60.0 %) achieved complete response (CR). The SUVmax, WBMTV and WBTLG values of the CR patients were 9.2 (range 2.8–47.1), 44.3 (range 0–362.6) ml, 181.8 (range 0–2180.9) ml, respectively, which were not significantly different from those of the non-CR patients: 10.6 (range 0–24.9), 15.7 (range 0–250.1) ml, and 97.4 (range 0–1052.1) ml. Conclusions Although 18 F-FDG PET/CT was a useful tool to detect MTX-LPD lesions, none of the 18 F-FDG PET parameters before the withdrawal of MTX could be used to predict CR after the withdrawal of MTX.