EVALUATION OF BONE METASTASES BY TC-99M MDP IMAGING IN PATIENTS WITH STOMACH-CANCER

The authors conducted a retrospective review of 234 bone scans of stom ach cancer patients who had been diagnosed at the Seoul National Unive rsity Hospital. In 106 of the 234 cases (45.3%), there were abnormal b one scan results, suggestive of bone metastases. The most common site of bone metastases was the spine, followed by the ribs, pelvis, femur, and skull. These sites were similar to those known for other malignan t diseases. The incidence of bone metastases increased according to th e duration of disease, especially within 12 months after diagnosis in patients with stage III gastric cancer. The incidence of bone metastas es increased as the clinical stage increased. However, the incidence o f metastases did not relate to gastric cancer pathologic type. The aut hors found 6 cases of ''superscan'' in the 234 bone scans (2.6%). The bone scan findings correlated positively with the level of serum alkal ine phosphatase.