Cross-modality PET/CT and contrast-enhanced CT imaging for pancreatic cancer

AIM:To explore the diagnostic value of the crossmodality fusion images provided by positron emission tomography/computed tomography(PET/CT) and contrast-enhanced CT(CECT) for pancreatic cancer(PC).METHODS:Data from 70 patients with pancreatic lesions who underwent CECT and PET/CT examinations at our hospital from August 2010 to October 2012were analyzed.PET/CECT for the cross-modality image fusion was obtained using Ture D software.The diagnostic efficiencies of PET/CT,CECT and PET/CECT were calculated and compared with each other using aχ2 test.P<0.05 was considered to indicate statistical significance.RESULTS:Of the total 70 patients,50 had PC and 20had benign lesions.The differences in the sensitivity,negative predictive value(NPV),and accuracy between CECT and PET/CECT in detecting PC were statistically significant(P<0.05 for each).In 15 of the 31patients with PC who underwent a surgical operation,peripancreatic vessel invasion was verified.The differences in the sensitivity,positive predictive value,NPV,and accuracy of CECT vs PET/CT and PET/CECT vs PET/CT in diagnosing peripancreatic vessel invasionwere statistically significant(P<0.05 for each).In 19of the 31 patients with PC who underwent a surgical operation,regional lymph node metastasis was verified by postsurgical histology.There was no statistically significant difference among the three methods in detecting regional lymph node metastasis(P>0.05for each).In 17 of the 50 patients with PC confirmed by histology or clinical follow-up,distant metastasis was confirmed.The differences in the sensitivity and NPV between CECT and PET/CECT in detecting distant metastasis were statistically significant(P<0.05 for each).CONCLUSION:Cross-modality image fusion of PET/CT and CECT is a convenient and effective method that can be used to diagnose and stage PC,compensating for the defects of PET/CT and CECT when they are conducted individually.

Suppression of gastric cancer growth by baculovirus vector-mediated transfer of normal epithelial cell specific-1 gene

AIM: To study the inhibitory effect of baculovirus- mediated normal epithelial cell specific-1 (NES1) gene therapy on gastric cancer (GC) in vitro and in vivo. METHODS: We first constructed recombinant baculovirus vectors and then transfected them into gastric cancer cells (SGC-7901). Efficiency of the baculovirus for gene transfer into SGC-7901 cells and cell growth curves were detected by fluorescence microscopy, Western blot and 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol- 2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay in vitro, respectively. The therapeutic effect of this gene therapy on GC was confirmed in xenografted nude mice. Tumor growth was determined by tumor volume, and expression of NES1 in tumor was analyzed by immunohistochemistry. RESULTS: Baculovirus vectors were successfully transfected into SGC-7901 cells. SGC-7901 cells transfected with the NES1 gene inhibited cell growth. In the Bac-NES1 treated group, tumor growth was significantly reduced with a high level of NES1 expression CONCLUSION: Baculovirus-mediated NES1 gene can be used in gene therapy for GC.