Skeletal metastases from breast cancer: Imaging with nuclear medicine

Breast cancer is a disease that commonly metastasizes to bone, increasing m orbidity, mortality, and health service costs. The 99m technetium (Tc-99m) diphosphonate bone scan historically has played a significant part in the e valuation of skeletal disease and continues to be one of the most clinicall y utilized investigations in the staging and follow up of breast cancer pat ients. More tumor-specific radiopharmaceuticals are now being evaluated and , in particular, 18-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose positron emission tomography ((18 )FDG PET) may have a greater role in this disease in the future. Copyright (C) 1999 by W.B. Saunders Company.