18F-fluoropivalate

18F-fluoropivalate ([18F]FPIA) is a novel radiopharmaceutical imaging agent developed by Imperial College London and licensed to Radiopharm Theranostics (under the code RAD 101). It is a small-molecule tracer designed to image short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) uptake, which serves as a proxy for fatty acid oxidation (FAO) in tumor cells. The tracer targets fatty acid synthase (FASN) and is particularly effective for imaging cerebral metastases because it exhibits low background signal in normal brain tissue, unlike glucose-based tracers. By quantifying the magnitude of early-step fatty acid oxidation, [18F]FPIA PET/MRI aims to differentiate between treatment-naïve metastases and those that have undergone stereotactic radiosurgery, providing a metabolic signature of viable tumor cells under bioenergetic stress.

Brand names

RAD 101RAD101RAD-101

Other names

18F-FPIAFluorine-18 fluoropivalateFluorine18 fluoropivalateFluorine 18 fluoropivalateFluoropivalate F-18