fluciclovine F-18 + methionine C-11

fluciclovine F-18 + methionine C-11 refers to a combination of positron emission tomography (PET) radiopharmaceuticals utilized in clinical research at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center for the diagnostic imaging of brain tumors. Fluciclovine F-18 (also known as FACBC) is a synthetic, non-metabolized amino acid analogue that is transported into cells primarily via the ASCT2 and LAT1 amino acid transporters, which are frequently overexpressed in malignant glioma cells. Methionine C-11 is a radiolabeled version of the essential amino acid methionine, which serves as a marker for amino acid transport and protein synthesis. In the context of brain cancer, these tracers are used to differentiate recurrent tumor tissue from post-treatment effects (such as radiation necrosis) by exploiting the increased metabolic demand and transporter activity of cancer cells. Clinical studies have compared these two agents to evaluate their relative sensitivity and tumor-to-background contrast, with fluciclovine F-18 often demonstrating superior contrast due to minimal uptake in healthy brain tissue.

Other names

18F-fluciclovine11C-METL-[methyl-11C]methionine1-amino-3-[18F]fluorocyclobutane-1-carboxylic acid