Association of Cardiovascular Risk Factors and Coronary Calcium Burden with Epicardial Adipose Tissue Volume Obtained from PET–CT Imaging in Oncological Patients

Abstract

Whole-body positron emission tomography (PET)–computed tomography (CT) imaging performed for oncological purposes may provide additional parameters such as the coronary artery calcium (CAC) and epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) volume with cost-effective prognostic information in asymptomatic people beyond traditional cardiovascular risk factors. We evaluated the feasibility of measuring the CAC score and EAT volume in cancer patients without known coronary artery disease (CAD) referred to whole-body 18F-FDG PET–CT imaging, regardless of the main clinical problem. We also investigated the potential relationships between traditional cardiovascular risk factors and CAC with EAT volume. A total of 109 oncological patients without overt CAD underwent whole-body PET–CT imaging with 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG). Unenhanced CT images were retrospectively viewed for CAC and EAT measurements on a dedicated platform. Overall, the mean EAT volume was 99 ± 49 cm3. Patients with a CAC score ≥ 1 were older than those with a CAC = 0 (p p p p p 18F-FDG PET–CT imaging, enabling staging cancer disease and atherosclerotic burden by a single test already included in the diagnostic work program, with optimization of the radiation dose and without additional costs.

Keywords

• coronary artery disease
• coronary artery calcium
• epicardial adipose tissue
• PET/CT imaging