Initial results with [<sup>18</sup>F]FAPI-74 PET/CT in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

Mori, Yuriko; Kramer, Vasko; Novruzov, Emil; Mamlins, Eduards; Röhrich, Manuel; Fernández, René; Amaral, Horacio; Soza-Ried, Cristian et al. · Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging · 2024

prospective_cohort · Level II

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Abstract

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a chronic fibrosing interstitial lung disease with a poor prognosis. <sup>68</sup>Ga-labeled FAP ligands exhibited highly promising results due to the crucial role of activated fibroblasts in fibrosis imaging of the lung. However, <sup>18</sup>F-labeled FAP ligands might provide qualitatively much higher imaging results with accompanying economic benefits due to large-scale production. Thus, we sought to investigate the potential of [<sup>18</sup>F]FAPI-74 prospectively in a small patient cohort. Eight patients underwent both [<sup>18</sup>F]FAPI-74-PET/CT and HRCT scans and were then compared with a control group without any fibrosing pulmonary disease. The tracer uptake of fibrotic lung areas was analyzed in synopsis with radiological and clinical parameters. We observed a positive correlation between the fibrotic active volume, the Hounsfield scale, as well as the vital and diffusing capacity of the lung. The initial results confirm our assumption that [<sup>18</sup>F]FAPI-74 offers a viable non-invasive assessment method for pulmonary fibrotic changes in patients with IPF.

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