Evaluation of DNA synthesis with carbon-11-labeled 4′-thiothymidine

Figure 8 4’-[methyl-¹¹C]-thiothymidine images in non-small cell lung cancer. Axial images of CT (A), ¹¹C-4DST PET (B), and ¹⁸F-FDG PET (C) in a 58-year-old man with lung adenocarcinoma in the right lower lobe. Radioactivity of ¹¹C-4DST in the ascending aorta (representing blood pool) is lower than that of ¹⁸F-FDG. Both ¹¹C-4DST and ¹⁸F-FDG clearly visualize lung lesions. Right hilar lymph node metastasis is confirmed on CT (D), and uptake of both ¹¹C-4DST PET (E) and ¹⁸F-FDG PET (F) identifies the lesion (arrow). However, ¹¹C-4DST images are clearer than ¹⁸F-FDG images because of low physiologic ¹¹C-4DST in the mediastinum (blood pool). This research was originally published in JNM[22]. ¹¹C-4DST: 4’-[methyl-¹¹C]-thiothymidine; PET: Positron emission tomography; ¹⁸F-FDG: 2-Deoxy-2-[¹⁸F]fluoro-D-glucose; CT: Computed tomography.