Prospective phase II trial of prognostication by 68Ga-NOTA-AE105 uPAR PET in patients with neuroendocrine neoplasms: Implications for uPAR targeted therapy

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Introduction: Non-invasive tools to improve prognostication are warranted in patients with neuroendocrine neoplasms (NEN). Expression of urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) is present in many cancer types and associated with a poor outcome, but largely unknown in NEN. uPAR-targeted radionuclide therapy has proven effective in preclinical models and uPAR may be a potential target in NEN patients.

Aim(s): Using an in-house developed uPAR PET tracer (68Ga-NOTA-AE105) we aimed to assess uPAR expression in NENs.

Materials and methods: Prospective clinical phase II trial, including 120 patients with NENs of all grades of whom 96 subsequently had uPAR PET/CT performed with evaluable lesions. PET/CT was acquired 20 minutes after injection of 200 MBq 68Ga-NOTA-AE105. uPAR target-to-liver ratio (uPAR TLR) was used to define lesions as uPAR positive when lesion SUVmax / liver SUVmean ≥ 2. Patients were followed for at least 1 year to assess progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS).

Conference:

Presenting Author: Carlsen E

Authors: Carlsen E, Loft M, Loft A, Berthelsen A, Langer S,

Keywords: urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (upar), neuroendocrine neoplasm, pet, prognosis, molecular imaging,