Volumetric PET parameters are predictive for the prognosis of locally advanced cervical cancer.

Background: The present study evaluates the relationship between PET/CT findings and survival in patients with locally advanced cervical cancer (LACC) with a squamous cell histology.

Methods: The study included 70 patients with LACC (FIGO stage IB2-IVA). The relationship between pretreatment PET/CT parameters, age, stage, lymph node metastasis and survival was evaluated using the univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazards model.

Results: The mean age of the 70 patients was 57.4 years and the mean duration of follow-up was 33.6 months. Disease progression occurred in 36 patients and 32 patients died during the follow-up period. In the univariate analysis, MTV-P and TLG-P were found to be related to progression-free survival (PFS), and stage, MTV-P, TLG-P and SUVmax-Ps were found to be related to overall survival (OS). However, only MTV-P and TLG-P were found to be independent prognostic factors for both PFS and OS.

Conclusions: The present findings suggest that volumetric PET parameters (MTV-P, TLG-P) predict the progression and survival of the patients with LACC.