Role of fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG PET)‐computed tomography (CT) in the staging of bladder cancer

Objective To determine whether to use 18F‐fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG PET) scans in the preoperative staging of bladder cancer (BC). Patients and Methods In all, 233 patients with muscle‐invasive BC (MIBC) or high‐risk non‐MIBC being considered for radical cystectomy (RC) between 2005 and 2011 had FDG‐PET and computed tomography (CT) of the chest, abdomen and pelvis to assess for pelvic lymph node (LN) involvement or distant metastases. Sensitivity and specificity for detecting pelvic LN involvement was determined by comparing the results of the scans to the histopathology reports in patients undergoing RC. These parameters for distant metastases were determined from biopsy results or follow‐up imaging. In patients who did not undergo RC, follow‐up imaging was used to evaluate the sensitivity and specificity. Patients were excluded from analysis if they either had neoadjuvant chemotherapy or had