Fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography-computed tomography in evaluation of pelvic and para-aortic nodal involvement in early stage and operable cervical cancer: comparison with surgicopathological findings

Nodal metastases in cervical cancer have prognostic implications. Imaging is used as an adjunct to clinical staging for evaluation of nodal metastases. Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) has an advantage of superior resolution of its CT component and detecting nodal disease based on increased glycolytic activity rather than node size. But there are limited studies describing its limitations in early stage cervical cancers. We have done meta-analysis with an objective to evaluate the efficacy of FDG PET/CT and its current clinical role in early stage and operable cervical cancer. Studies in which FDG PET/CT was performed before surgery in patients with early stage cervical cancers were included for analysis. PET findings were confirmed with histopathological diagnosis rather than clinical follow-up. The current data suggest that FDG PET/CT is suboptimal in nodal staging in early stage cervical cancer