Gallium-67 Scintigraphy in Differential Diagnosis of Malignant Tumours from Non-Tumorous Lesions of the Maxilla

Objective: To assess the gallium-67 (67Ga) scintigraphy in differential diagnosis of malignant tumours from non-tumorous lesions of the maxilla. Methods: Nineteen patients with malignant tumours (six cases of squamous cell carcinoma and one case of malignant melanoma) and non-tumorous lesions (seven cases of maxillary sinusitis and five cases of postoperative maxillary changes) in the maxilla underwent 67Ga and bone scintigraphy with CT and MRI. The statistical analysis with respect to comparison between imaging features of 67Ga and bone scintigraphy and maxillary lesions was performed with the Pearson's chi-squared test. Results: 67Ga scintigraphy for six of the seven patients with malignant tumours in the maxilla was positive (85.7%), 0 of 12 patients with non-tumorous lesions were positive (0%) (P = 0.000). Bone scintigraphy for six out of seven patients with malignant tumours was positive (85.7%), 10 of 12 patients with non-tumorous lesions were positive (83.3%) (P = 0.891). Conclusion: 67Ga scintigraphy was useful for detection of malignant tumours in the maxilla. However, bone scintigraphy was not an effective technique for interpretation of malignant tumours, maxillary sinusitis and postoperative change in the maxilla. Keywords: carcinoma, gallium radioisotopes, gamma cameras, maxilla