Thallium-201 scintigraphy - A predictor of tumour necrosis in soft tissue sarcoma following preoperative radiotherapy?

Abstract

Aim: Thallium-201 (TI-201) scintigraphy in patients with malignant soft tissue tumours was evaluated to determine whether the images correlated with histological response to preoperative radiotherapy. Methods: We studied 54 patients, median age 32 (range 17-84) years, with non-metastatic, malignant soft tissue tumours diagnosed between 1996 and 2001. Thirty-eight patients had unoperated tumours and 16 patients had previous incomplete excisions. All patients received preoperative radiotherapy followed by surgery. No patient received chemotherapy as part of their initial management. Qualitative analyses of early phase (30 min) and late phase (4 h) TI-201 scintigraphic images before and after p..