[18F]CETO

[18F]CETO is a radiopharmaceutical used as a positron emission tomography (PET) imaging agent for the adrenal cortex. It is a fluorine-18 labeled analog of etomidate, specifically para-chloro-2-[18F]fluoroethyletomidate. The tracer demonstrates high selectivity and affinity for the adrenal cortex with low non-specific uptake in other tissues such as the liver. Its primary clinical application is in the evaluation and lateralization of primary aldosteronism (PA), aiding in distinguishing unilateral from bilateral disease to guide treatment decisions between surgery and medical therapy. Compared to carbon-11 labeled metomidate ([11C]MTO), [18F]CETO offers logistical advantages due to its longer half-life (~110 minutes), allowing distribution to centers without on-site cyclotrons and improved image contrast due to lower background activity. Clinical studies have shown that [18F]CETO is safe, well-tolerated, and effective at visualizing adrenocortical adenomas (APAs) with enhanced distinction after dexamethasone pretreatment[1][2][4][5][6].

Other names

fluorine F 18 para-chloro-2-fluoroethyl-etomidate[^18F]CETO18F-CETO