Technetium-99m methoxyisobutylisonitrile single-photon emission tomography in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Nine lesions in eight patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) were studied using single-photon emission tomography (SPET) and technetium-99m methoxyisobutylisonitrile (99mTc-MIBI) to evaluate the pattern of uptake of 99mTc-MIBI in the lesions and the relation between the uptake pattern and the histopathology of HCC. All the lesions were diagnosed as HCC by percutaneous needle biopsy. Four of the nine lesions showed positive uptake of 99mTc-MIBI, while the other five showed negative uptake. All of the lesions which showed positive uptake were of the compact type. Of the five lesions that showed negative uptake, four were of the trabecular type while one was of the compact type. These results suggest that the patterns of 99mTc-MIBI accumulation in HCC are divided into positive and negative types and that these uptake patterns are associated with the tissue structure of HCC.