what is fdg in pet scan

FDG stands for fluorodeoxyglucose, which is a radiotracer used in positron emission tomography (PET) scans to highlight areas of activity within the body that are suggestive of cancer. FDG is a radioactive substance similar to glucose, which is a type of sugar. Cancer cells use more glucose than normal cells to grow and spread, so the FDG radiotracer will pool in areas of the body that have cancer. An FDG PET scan is a highly sensitive tool for the detection of regional and distant recurrences, with a reported sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of 94%, 82%, and 87%, respectively