Positron imaging feasibility studies. II: Characteristics of 2-deoxyglucose uptake in rodent and canine neoplasms: concise communication.

Uptake of [3H]2-deoxyglucose was studied in BALB/c mice with EMT-6 sarcoma, in Buffalo rats with Morris 7777 hepatoma, and in eight dogs with spontaneous neoplasms: five osteosarcomas and three diffuse lymphomas. High tumor-to-tissue ratios were observed for all tumor types studied. In rodents, peak levels of uptake occurred between 30 min and 1 hr, with a slow loss from the tumor of about 10% per hour thereafter. In dogs there was considerable variability in uptake, both between individuals and at different tumor sites within an individual. Necrotic tumor did not take up the radiotracer. Absolute uptakes, when normalized for body weight, were similar for spontaneous and transplanted neoplasms. These studies provide additional support for the concept that positron emission tomography can be used to obtain functional images of important metabolic processes of tumors, including glycolysis.