PET/CT Variants and Pitfalls in Bone and Soft Tissue Sarcoma

Sarcomas are rare tumors of mesenchymal origin and comprise only around 1% of adult cancers. The abundance of sarcoma histiotypes, with distinct imaging characteristics, biology, clinical behavior and treatment strategy, result in a complex disease presentation, requiring management by multidisciplinary specialized sarcoma centers. Oncologic and musculoskeletal radiology guidelines provide minimal guidance and only fragmentary information on the indications of F-18-FDG PET/CT in sarcoma. Therefore, knowledge of various phenotypes with preference for bone and lymph node metastases or higher incidence of local and distant recurrence is essential to select the appropriate diagnostic imaging tests and its interpretation. Benign and malignant soft tissue and bone tumors often share common radiographic and metabolic imaging characteristics. In addition, metastases of various histiotypes might exhibit a spectrum of atypical imaging appearances. Therefore, imaging specialists need to be aware of these variants and associated pitfalls of sarcoma imaging. (C) 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

Sarcomas, rare tumors of mesenchymal origin, account for only around 1% of adult cancers. The variety of sarcoma histiotypes and complex disease presentation necessitate management by multidisciplinary specialized sarcoma centers. Knowledge of different phenotypes and characteristics is essential for selecting appropriate diagnostic imaging tests.