Accurate assessment of whole-body retention for PRRT with ¹⁷⁷Lu using paired measurements with external detectors

The aim of this study was to assess the accuracy of the results of whole-body measurements by comparison with the urine collection method in the PRRT with ¹⁷⁷Lu and furthermore to develop a more accurate method of paired measurements. Excreted samples were collected at given intervals and activities were measured by a dose calibrator. Traditionally, whole-body activities during subsequent measurements are normalized individually to the administered activity. In order to correct for the effects of the activity in the bladder during the baseline measurement before the first voiding and activity redistributions in the patient body during subsequent measurements, a series of paired measurements before and after each voiding were carried out. Time-dependent detector responses at given times were derived and time-activity retentions were then determined. Compared to the results of the urine collection, whole-body activities by traditional whole-body measurements were overestimated by ca. 14% at 1 h after administration and randomly varied from -29% to 49% at 24 h. Measurement uncertainties of whole-body activities were from ±4% (the coverage factor k=2) at 1 h to >±20% at 24 h by the urine collection and ±7% by paired measurements, respectively. Whole-body activities at 1 h by paired measurements were validated using the results by measurements of the collected first urine. The new method of paired measurements has an equivalent measurement accuracy and even better during the later measurements with respect to the urine collection method and therefore can replace urine approach for assessing the time-activity remaining in the patient body.