PET Center Name
PET Center Address
PET Center Phone and Fax Number
Patient Name:
Policy Number:
Date of Service:
To Whom It May Concern:
(Insert patient name) is a patient of ours. (His/Hers) first PET/CT was performed
on (Insert Date), the second on Insert Date),. The second was performed for
XRT planning which demonstrates an increase in mass size along with additional
lymph nodes with hyper metabolic activity. Without the subsequent PET/CT
scan, the patient may have not received the appropriate treatment.
Head and neck cancers account for about 3% - 5% of cancers in the adult
population of the U.S. Squamous cell carcinomas represent the majority of the
head and neck tumors. About 40% of patients with squamous cell head and
neck cancers have localized disease. The remaining 60% have advanced
disease. FDG PET is very accurate in identifying head and neck primary tumors.
FDG PET correctly identified 88% of primary laryngeal tumors and 100% of
malignant parotid neoplasms. In another study, PET correctly identified 96% of
primary head and neck malignancies – only two small lesions were not identified.
PET has a higher sensitivity compared to CT (87% versus 62%) and specificity
(89% versus 73%) for staging cancer. PET imaging results can impact patient
management in up to 70% of cases by confirming local disease or identifying
unsuspected metastases. The presence of metastatic disease can significantly
impact on patient management. By providing a whole body survey, FDG PET
can detect distant sites of metastatic disease and other primary neoplasms. PET
imaging has been shown to be more sensitive and specific than CT for the
detection of nodal metastases. The sensitivity of FDG PET imaging for the
staging of cervical lymph nodes is between 67% to 91%, and specificity is
between 82% to 100%. For lymph node metastases from the mouth, FDG PET
has a sensitivity of 75% to 91%, and a specificity of 88% to 96% - this is superior
to MRI (36% - 78% and 71% - 94%). Patients with head and neck tumors also
have a high incidence of secondary tumors of the aero digestive tract. FDG PET
imaging can easily identify other primary neoplasms and result in timely and
appropriate treatment.
Per the above please re-process procedure code 78815 to pay accordingly.
Thank you in advance for your time and consideration in this matter.
See attachments regarding various reports/findings on _______________
Sincerely,