- The NCCN Guidelines® now recommend FES PET imaging for systemic staging in patients with invasive lobular cancer (ILC).
- GE HealthCare's Cerianna, the only FDA-approved agent for detecting ER+ lesions, drives this recommendation.
- ILC accounts for 10-15% of all breast cancers in the U.S., affecting approximately 43,000 new patients annually.
The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) has updated its Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology to include recommendations for using fluoroestradiol (FES) positron emission tomography (PET) imaging in patients with invasive lobular breast cancer (ILC). This marks a significant advancement in breast cancer diagnostics, focusing on more precise detection and earlier intervention strategies.
GE HealthCare (GEHC, Financial), the Nasdaq-listed company, offers Cerianna™ (fluoroestradiol F18) injection—the only FDA-approved imaging agent to evaluate estrogen receptor-positive (ER+) lesions in recurrent or metastatic breast cancer, including ILC. This update could enhance diagnostic accuracy and facilitate broader insurance coverage for comprehensive diagnosis, thus accelerating treatment decisions.
ILC is the second most common type of breast cancer in the United States, constituting about 10-15% of all cases, with an estimated 43,000 new diagnoses each year. Notably, approximately 95% of ILC tumors are ER+, yet they often go undetected in routine screenings due to their unique growth patterns. Cerianna assists in overcoming these challenges by enabling whole-body imaging to assess ER status, improving detection of difficult-to-diagnose lobular tumors.
Dr. Jit Saini, Chief Medical Officer of the Pharmaceutical Diagnostics division at GE HealthCare, emphasized the importance of this guideline update, highlighting its potential to offer oncologists increased confidence in using Cerianna PET imaging, ultimately resulting in more precise and timely clinical decision-making.
The recommendation stemmed from a working group of experts organized by the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI) and other leading cancer and imaging institutions. It underscores the pivotal role of GE HealthCare’s pharmaceutical diagnostics segment, which remains at the forefront of providing innovative imaging solutions across oncology and other therapeutic areas.
