Comparison of thallium-201 and gallium-67 imaging in evaluation of head and neck tumors

Purpose: Tl-201 imaging was compared with Ga-67 imaging in the detection of malignant head and neck tumors. Method: Eighteen patients with tumors in the head and neck region underwent both planar and SPECT imaging using (TL)-T-201-chloride and Ga-67-citrate. The detection of primary rumors and lymph node (LN) metastases by visual e valuation was compared between Tl-201 and Ga-67 imaging. Additionally, quan titative analysis of the SPECT images was performed in eight patients. Results: On visual evaluation, primary tumor uptake was detectable in 100% on the Tl-201 SPECT images compared with 44% on the Ga-67 SPECT images. The sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of Tl-201 in detecting LN metastase s were higher than those of Ga-67 SPECT; however, there was no statistical difference between Tl-201 and Ga-67. The tumor-to-background ratio was sign ificantly higher on Tl-201 SPECT than on Ga-67 SPECT. Conclusion: This study suggested that Tl-201 could be useful in the evaluat ion of malignant tumors in the head and neck region.