EFFICACY OF OCTREOTIDE IN THE REGRESSION OF A METASTATIC CARCINOID-TUMOR DESPITE NEGATIVE IMAGING WITH IN-111-PENTETREOTIDE (OCTREOSCAN)

We present the case of a 52-year old patient diagnosed with carcinoid tumour of the rectum with liver metastases in which treatment with som atostatin analogues (octreotide) proved very effective in the disappea rance of the symptomatology and dramatic efficacy in the regression of the tumour. Imaging by octreoscan was always negative. The role of oc treotide in the treatment of carcinoid tumour and the usefulness of In -111-pentetreotide (octreoscan) in the localization and prediction of the response to treatment with octreotide is discussed. We conclude th at the negative result of the scintigraphic image with octreoscan does not necessarily suppose the inefficacy of octreotide treatment. We be lieve that this may constitute an important issue since some patients may be denied octreotide treatment in the absence of a positive octreo scan result.