Comparison of [18F]FIMP, [11C]MET, and [18F]FDG PET for early-phase assessment of radiotherapy response

Several limitations of [F-18]FDG have been reported, such as nonspecific uptake of inflammation foci. Moreover, [C-11]MET has been found to accumulate in normal and inflammatory tissues as well as tumors. To increase specificity to tumor tissues, PET probes with tumor-specific molecular targets have been actively developed. [F-18]FIMP was found to be highly accumulated in LAT1-positive tumors but not in inflamed tissue. The aim of this study was to explore whether [F-18]FIMP can be used for the early-phase evaluation of radiotherapy accompanied by inflammation, and compare its effectiveness with those of [C-11]MET and [F-18]FDG. Tumor uptake of [F-18]FIMP decreased at day 1 after irradiation, and remained low until day 14. Comparatively, that of [F-18]FDG initially decreased at day 3 but was transiently elevated at day 7 and then decreased again at day 10. Decreased tumor uptake of [C-11]MET was observed at day 10. In line with the uptake of [F-18]FIMP, the ratio of Ki-67 immuno-positive cells in tumor tissues significantly decreased at day 1, 7, and 10 as compared with that in the control. These findings suggest that [F-18]FIMP may be a PET probe involved in the early detection and prediction of radiotherapy efficacy, although further clarification is needed.