To compare the diagnostic accuracy of CT or MRI with ₁₈F-FDG PET/CT for the preoperative staging of ovarian cancer.

Twenty-eight patients (15-67 years; mean 46 years) with 38 surgically confirmed ovarian cancer lesions (4-30 cm, mean 11.2 cm) underwent CT or MR (CT on 20; MR on 10) and ₁₈F-FDG PET/CT to compare each imaging modality in accordance to the FIGO stage.

The FIGO staging results revealed stage I disease in 11 patients, stage III disease in 14 patients, and stage IV disease in three patients. In total, six of the 38 tumors (16%) showed no evidence of abnormal uptake on the ₁₈F-FDG PET/CT, while one of the 38 tumors (3%) showed no evidence of enhancing on the solid portion for either CT or MRI. The lack of typical advanced stage characteristics of the aforementioned tumors resulted in their stage I disease classification. The CT or MRI staging was correlated with FIGO staging in 21 of the 28 patients (75%), whereas the ₁₈F-FDG PET/CT staging was similarly correlated in 23 of the 28 patients (82%). We found no significant difference in the diagnostic accuracy of CT or MRI versus the ₁₈F-FDG PET/CT in the preoperative staging of ovarian cancer.

Besides CT or MRI, additional ₁₈F-FDG PET/CT imaging is not mandatory for the preoperative staging of ovarian cancer.