Imaging approaches to assess the therapeutic response of gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (GEP-NETs): current perspectives and future trends of an exciting field in development

Abstract

Gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (GEP-NETs) are a family of neoplasms with a complex spectrum of clinical behavior. Although generally more indolent than carcinomas, once they progress beyond surgical resectability, they are essentially incurable. Systemic treatment options have substantially expanded in recent years for the management of advanced disease. Imaging plays a major role in new drug development, as it is the main tool used to objectively evaluate response to novel agents. However, current standard response criteria have proven suboptimal for the assessment of the antiproliferative effect of many targeted agents, particularly in the context of slow-growing tumors such as well-differentiated NETs. The aims of this article are to discuss the advantages and limitations of conventional radiological techniques and standard response assessment criteria and to review novel imaging modalities in development as well as alternative cancer- and therapy-specific criteria to assess drug efficacy in the field of GEP-NETs.