High ¹¹C-methionine uptake in brain abscess: radiological, metabolic and morphological findings: a case report

Abstract

An increased amino acid metabolism is characteristic for many brain malignancies. Combined positron emission and computed tomography (PET/CT) with radiolabeled amino acids is often used in recognizing the tumor nature of the structural brain lesion detected on MRI. On 11C-methionine PET/CT a hallmark of a brain tumor is an increased amino acid uptake, topographically coinciding with a structural lesion on MRI. However, high 11C-methionine uptake in the brain lesion is not tumor specific and could be seen in a number of non-tumor diseases. The paper presents three observations of a brain abscess, radiological and metabolic data of which in MRI and 11C-methionine PET/CT simulated a malignant cerebral tumor. The reasons for patients seeking nuclear medicine examination were seizures or focal neurological symptoms, as well as a suspicion of a cerebral tumor based on the contrast-enhanced MRI. Knowledge of the non-tumor disease characterized by high 11C-methionine uptake will help avoid misdiagnosis of a cerebral tumor.