Measuring fatty acid oxidation in gliomas using 18F-FPIA PET/MRI
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Determining the magnitude of early steps of fatty acid oxidation in glioma using 18F-FPIA PET/MRI
IRAS ID
228245
Contact name
Matthew Williams
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Imperial College London
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
Glioma is the most common form of primary malignant brain tumour in adults with has a very poor prognosis. Its most aggressive form Glioblastoma has a two-year survival rate of only 26.5% on current best therapy which includes surgery followed by combination chemotherapy and radiotherapy. In healthy brain cells, glucose is the major nutrient used for energy creation however recent studies have indicated brain tumours simultaneously use sources other than glucose for energy creation i.e. fatty acids (fatty acid metabolism). It is thought this is due to the increased energy demands of tumours allowing for their rapid growth. We have developed special type of scan which uses Positron Emission Tomography and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (PET-MRI) that might help us detect fatty acid metabolism in brain tumours. The scan involves injection of a substance called a radioactive tracer into a vein. The radioactive tracer used in this study is called 18F-FPIA. It is thought that 18F-FPIA will accumulate in brain tumours which use fatty acids to create energy, from which the signal can be detected using the PET/MRI scanner.
This tracer shows high contrast for imaging brain tumours in animal models making it a suitable for the detection of fatty acid metabolism in human brain tumours. We aim to quantify the degree of this process using the PET-MRI scan. Combined PET-MRI imaging allows simultaneous imaging of the tracer in tumour cells, combined with the structural imaging of the tumour. As part of the patients’ routine clinical care, they will all go on to have a biopsy or surgical removal of their tumour. This will give us the opportunity to attain tissue specimens on which we can do certain tests e.g. genetic testing, to identify genes which have been shown to correlate with the aggressiveness of the tumour, as well as study the individual changes in energy metabolism within the tumour, a method called ‘metabolomics.’
REC name
Yorkshire & The Humber - South Yorkshire Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
18/YH/0082
Date of REC Opinion
26 Mar 2018
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion