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Mike Mitka

JAMA. 2001;286:1443.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

PET scans are an important tool in the staging and clinical management of women with recurrent breast cancer, says a study appearing in the September 4 issue of The Journal of Nuclear Medicine.

Among 50 patients with recurrent breast cancer (treated by 32 physicians) studied, treatment was changed for 60% because of the results of PET scans. These changes included switching from medical treatment to no treatment or changing the existing treatment, such as switching from one kind of chemotherapy to another.

The results of the scans also caused physicians to restage the cancer in 36% of the women—28% were upstaged and 8% were downstaged. Before the scan, 36% of patients were reported as having stage IV cancer. After the scan, 52% were classified as having stage IV disease because previously undetected metastases were found.

"These results demonstrate the importance of PET in making treatment decisions for women . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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