Annals of nuclear medicine
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The maximum standardized uptake value (SUV(max)) on (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography ((18)F-FDG PET) within the primary tumor may predict outcome in patients with surgically resected non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, it remains uncertain whether the SUV(max) of the primary tumor predicts outcome after chemotherapy in advanced NSCLC. Thus, we evaluated the ratio of SUV(max) of the metastatic tumor to the primary tumor (M/P ratio) to determine whether it could be a useful marker in predicting response and outcome after chemotherapy in advanced NSCLC. ⋯ High M/P ratio was associated with a poor response to initial chemotherapy and was a significant independent factor in predicting poor outcome in advanced NSCLC patients with metastatic tumors other than in brain.