Neuroendocrine tumours and 177Lu-DOTATATE

Assessing the therapeutic potential of 177Lu-DOTATATE in neuroendocrine tumours

Neuroendocrine tumours (NETs) is a term for rare malignancies that arise in neuroendocrine cells anywhere in the body. The most common sites are the gastrointestinal tract, pancreas and lungs. Between 1995 and 2018 there was a 371% rise in cases per 100,0001. Although reasons for this increase in incidence are unclear, developing effective therapies is a priority as treatment options remain limited.

Tumour characteristics of NETs determine the available therapeutic options2. These characteristics vary among the different subtypes, which arise from cells of the neuroendocrine system. A modern therapeutic development for NETs that express receptors for somatostatin is the peptide receptor radionuclide therapy 177Lu-DOTATATE3. 177Lu is a beta-emitting radioisotope, whilst DOTATATE refers to the carrier molecule, which is a synthetic somatostatin receptor agonist that binds to the somatostatin peptide surface receptors on the tumour. The emission of...

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