PET-detected pneumonitis following curative-intent chemoradiation in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC): recognizing patterns and assessing the impact on the predictive ability of FDG-PET/CT response assessment

Purpose Inflammatory FDG uptake in the lung (PET-pneumonitis) following curative-intent radiotherapy (RT)/chemo-RT (CRT) in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) can pose a challenge in FDG-PET/CT response assessment. The aim of this study is to describe different patterns of PET-pneumonitis to guide the interpretation of FDG-PET/CT and investigate its association with tumor response and overall survival (OS). Methods Retrospective analysis was performed on 87 NSCLC patients in three prospective trials who were treated with radical RT ( n = 7) or CRT ( n = 80), with baseline and post-treatment FDG-PET/CT. Visual criteria were performed for post-treatment FDG-PET/CT response assessment. The grading of PET-pneumonitis was based on relative lung uptake intensity compared to organs of reference and classified as per Deauville score from grade 1–5. Distribution patterns of PET-pneumonitis were defined as follows: A) patchy/sub-pleural; B) diffuse (involving more than a segment); and C) peripheral (diffusely surrounding a photopenic region). Results Follow-up FDG-PET/CT scans were performed approximately 3 months (median, 89 days; interquartile range, 79–93) after RT. Overall, PET-pneumonitis was present in 62/87 (71%) of patients, with Deauville 2 or 3 in 12/62 (19%) and 4 or 5 in 50/62 (81%) of patients. The frequency of patterns A, B and C of PET-pneumonitis was 19/62 (31%), 20/62 (32%) and 23/62 (37%), respectively. No association was found between grade or pattern of PET-pneumonitis and overall response at follow-up PET/CT ( p = 0.27 and p = 0.56, respectively). There was also no significant association between PET-pneumonitis and OS (hazard ratio [HR], 1.3; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.6–2.5; p = 0.45). Early FDG-PET/CT response assessment, however, was prognostic for OS (HR, 1.7; 95% CI, 1.2–2.2; p