Clinical significance of the serum IL-2R level and Ga-67 scan findings in making a differential diagnosis between sarcoidosis and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma

• Published in: Annals of nuclear medicine 2007-11, Vol.21 (9), p.499-503
• Main Authors: Kita, Tamotsu, Watanabe, Sadahiro, Yano, Fuzuki, Hayashi, Katsumi, Yamamoto, Masayoshi, Iwasaki, Yoshie, Kosuda, Shigeru
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Biomarkers, Tumor - blood; Diagnosis, Differential; Female; Gallium Isotopes - administration & dosage; Humans; Injections, Intravenous; Interleukin-2 Receptor alpha Subunit - blood; Lymphoma; Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin - diagnosis; Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin - diagnostic imaging; Male; Middle Aged; Neoplasm Staging - methods; Pharmaceutical industry; Sarcoidosis - diagnosis; Sarcoidosis - diagnostic imaging; Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon; Whole Body Imaging
• ISSN: 0914-7187; 1864-6433
• DOI: 10.1007/s12149-007-0060-9

To compare the serum-soluble interleukin-2 receptor (sIL-2R) levels of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma patients and active sarcoidosis patients in relation to the (67)Ga scan findings. A total of 29 adenopathy patients suspected of having non-Hodgkin's lymphoma or sarcoidosis were enrolled in the study. All patients underwent a whole-body (67)Ga scan and single-photon emission computed tomography studies 48 h after intravenous injection of (67)Ga citrate. The sIL-2R levels were compared between the sarcoidosis patients and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma patients, the patients with and without the panda and/or lambda sign, the lymphoma patients with stage I/II disease and with stage III/IV disease, and the sarcoidosis patients and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma patients with stage III/IV disease. The range of the sIL-2R levels was 195-3750 U/ml in sarcoidosis and 240-62 300 U/ml in non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. The sIL-2R levels of the six non-Hodgkin's lymphoma patients with stage III/IV disease were significantly higher than those of the 15 sarcoidosis patients (P < 0.001). The sIL-2R levels of the sarcoidosis patients with the panda and/or lambda sign were significantly higher than those with neither sign (P < 0.005). The sIL-2R levels of the non-Hodgkin's lymphoma patients with stage III/IV disease were significantly higher than those of the patients with stage I/II disease (P < 0.005). Measurement of sIL-2R levels was sometimes useful in differentiating between sarcoidosis and stage III/IV non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, staging non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, and predicting the presence of the panda and/or lambda sign in sarcoidosis patients.