Clinicopathological presentation of varying F-18-FDG uptake and expression of glucose transporter 1 and hexokinase II in cases of hepatocellular carcinoma and cholangiocellular carcinoma

We report the results of F-18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG PET) and immunohistochemical staining of glucose transporter 1 (Glut-1) and hexokinase II (HK-II) in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and cholangiocellular carcinoma (CCC) to observe the variation in F-18-FDG uptake and variation in expression of Glut-1 and HK-II in these hepatic tumors. In the case of HCC, moderate F-18-FDG uptake and strong expression of HK-II were detected, whereas Glut-1 was not expressed. Conversely, CCC showed high F-18-FDG uptake and increased expression of Glut-1 but HK-II was not expressed. The variation in the F-18-FDG uptake and expression of Glut 1 and HK-II in HCC and CCC might be owing to the difference in origin and the different mechanisms involved in glucose uptake, rate of glucose transporters, and hexokinase activity involved in the glycolytic pathway.