Comparison of integrated PET/MRI with PET/CT in evaluation of endometrial cancer: a retrospective analysis of 81 cases

Background The objective of this study was to compare the diagnostic value of integrated PET/MRI with PET/CT for assessment of regional lymph node metastasis and deep myometrial invasion detection of endometrial cancer. Methods Eighty-one patients with biopsy-proven endometrial cancer underwent preoperative PET/CT ( n = 37) and integrated PET/MRI ( n = 44) for initial staging. The diagnostic performance of PET/CT and integrated PET/MRI for assessing the extent of the primary tumor and metastasis to the regional lymph nodes was evaluated by two experienced readers. Histopathological and follow-up imaging results were used as the gold standard. McNemar’s test was employed for statistical analysis. Results Integrated PET/MRI and PET/CT both detected 100% of the primary tumors. Integrated PET/MRI proved significantly more sensitivity and specificity than PET/CT in regional lymph node metastasis detection ( P = 0.015 and P < 0.001, respectively). The overall accuracy of myometrial invasion detection for PET/CT and Integrated PET/MRI was 45.9% and 81.8%, respectively. Integrated PET/MRI proved significantly more accurate than PET/CT ( P < 0.001). Conclusion Integrated PET/MRI, which complements the individual advantages of MRI and PET, is a valuable technique for the assessment of the lymph node metastasis and myometrial invasion in patients with endometrial cancer.