The Relationship between Brown Adipose Tissue Activity and Neoplastic Status: an 18F-FDG PET/CT Study in the Tropics

Brown adipose tissue (BAT) has thermogenic potential. For its activation, cold exposure is considered a critical factor though other determinants have also been reported.

The purpose of this study was to assess the relationship between neoplastic status and BAT activity by 2-deoxy-2-[18F]fluoro-D-glucose (18F-FDG) positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) in people living in the tropics, where the influence of outdoor temperature was low.

Methods: 18F-FDG PET/CT scans were reviewed and the total metabolic activity (TMA) of identified activated BAT quantified. The distribution and TMA of activated BAT were compared between patients with and without a cancer history.

The neoplastic status of patients was scored according to their cancer history and 18F-FDG PET/CT findings. We evaluated the relationships between the TMA of BAT and neoplastic status along with other factors: age, body mass index, fasting blood sugar, gender, and outdoor temperature.

Results: Thirty of 1740 patients had activated BAT.

Those with a cancer history had wider BAT distribution (p=0.043) and a higher TMA (p=0.028) than those without. A higher neoplastic status score was associated with a higher average TMA.

Multivariate analyses showed that neoplastic status was the only factor significantly associated with the TMA of activated BAT (p = 0.016).

Conclusions: Neoplastic status is a critical determinant of BAT activity in patients living in the tropics. More active neoplastic status was associated with more vigorous TMA of BAT.

Author: Yung-Cheng HuangTai-Been ChenChien-Chin HsuShau-Hsuan LiPei-Wen WangBi-Fang LeeChing-Yuan KuoNan-Tsing Chiu
Credits/Source: Lipids in Health and Disease 2011, 10:238

Published on: 2011-12-20

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