The pretreatment of maximum standardized uptake values (SUVmax) of the primary tumor is predictor for poor prognosis for patients with epithelial ovarian cancer

The purpose of this study was to evaluate prognostic factors for epithelial ovarian cancer. We found that the pretreatment values of maximum standardized uptake (SUVmax) of the primary tumor by positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT), tumor marker CA125 and C-reactive protein (CRP) were correlated with clinical characteristics and prognosis for such patients. The clinical parameters and prognoses and their correlations with SUVmax of primary tumor, CA125 and CRP were examined for 51 patients with primary ovarian cancer. The SUVmax of the primary tumor had a statistically significant association with stage (p=0.010) and histology (p=0.001). CA125 was significant associated with stage (p=0.011), histology (p=0.005) and lymph node metastasis (p=0.025). CRP was also significantly associated with stage (p=0.049). Disease-free survival rates of patients exhibiting a high SUVmax, CA125 and CRP were significantly lower than those exhibiting a low SUVmax, CA125 and CRP levels (p=0.008, 0.034, and 0.037, respectively). Furthermore, overall survival rates of patients exhibiting a high SUVmax were significantly lower than those exhibiting a low SUVmax (p=0.049).The high SUVmax of primary tumor is an important factor for identifying ovarian cancer patients with a predictor for poor prognosis. (author)