Influence of immediate post-therapy bone scintigraphy in the assessment of response to therapy in a case of nasopharyngeal carcinoma

A patient with undifferenfiated stage IV (T3N3M0) nasopharyngeal carcinoma (WHO type III) underwent pre- and one-month post-therapy bone scintigraphy as part of an ongoing trial combining scintigraphic and radiographic modalities. The patient had advanced disease in the nasopharynx and bulky cervical lymph nodes at presentation. Initial bone scintigraphy performed 10 days prior to therapy was negative for bone metastases. Immediately after concomitant chemoradiotherapy, bone scintigraphy revealed distant metastases, whereas clinical assessment of disease disclosed complete response to therapy in the nasopharynx and cervical lymph nodes. The scintigraphic findings were also confirmed by a subsequent MRI scan of the corresponding regions.