Concordant PET/CT and ICG positive lymph nodes in endometrial cancer: a case of mistaken identity

Abstract

Endometrial carcinoma is the most common gynecological malignancy in developed countries. In early stage endometrial cancer, routine systemic pelvic lymphadenectomy showed no survival benefits and results in increased morbidity. The role of PET/CT imaging for the pre-operative detection of lymph node metastases in endometrial cancer is unclear. Sentinel lymph node (SLN) mapping may reduce the surgical staging morbidity while maintaining prognostic information of the lymph node status. Recently, indocyanine green (ICG) SLN mapping has been utilized to detect nodal metastasis in endometrial cancer. Endosalpingiosis is defined as the presence of tubal-like epithelium outside of the fallopian tube and can sometimes be misinterpreted as cancer metastasis. Here, we discuss a patient with newly diagnosed endometrial cancer who had pelvic and para-aortic lymph nodes with high glucose avidity on PET/CT, and ICG positivity on SLN mapping, suspected clinically to be metastatic adenocarcinoma, but with the pathological finding of endosalpingiosis only.