Review Article False-positive uptake on radioiodine whole-body ...

Introduction Differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) is a favor-able malignant tumor, and is associated with a lower risk of death, compared with most other malignancies [1]. Radioiodine has been used for more than five decades for diagnosis and treatment of patients with DTC, with reliance on the fact that trapping, organification, and stor-age of iodine is more prominent in functioning thyroid tissues than other tissues [2, 3]. In par-ticular, on the molecular level, enhanced ex-pression of sodium-iodide symporter (NIS) is a key mechanism of radioiodine uptake in func-tioning thyroid tissues [4-6]. Radioiodine whole-body scintigraphy (WBS) is an integral part of detection of NIS expression in patients suffering from recurrent or metastatic thyroid cancer and in selection of patients who might benefit from radioiodine therapy [7-9]. Precise interpretation of radioiodine WBS can result in avoidance of futile exposure to high-dose radioiodine and lead patients to optimal management of thyroid

cancer, as well as other non-thyroidal disease. A considerable number of cases of unexpected radioiodine uptake have been reported. Al-though the mechanism is not fully understood, it can be categorized as follows: 1) functional NIS expression (in normal tissues, including thymus, breast, salivary glands, and gastrointestinal tract, or various benign and malignant tumors), 2) metabolism of radioiodinated thyroid hor-mone, 3) retention of radioiodinated body fluids (saliva, tears, blood, urine, exudate, transudate, gastric and mucosal secretions, etc.) associated with or without structural change, 4) retention and uptake of radioiodine in inflamed tissue, 5) contamination by physiologic secretions, and 6) unknown. The experienced nuclear medicine physician can differentiate malignant from physiologic radioiodine uptake; however, some findings may remain ambiguous. The first step in evaluation of a patient with suspected resid-ual or recurrent thyroid cancer is correlation of normal or abnormal scintigraphic findings with

Am J Nucl Med Mol Imaging 2012;2(3):362-385 www.ajnmmi.us /ISSN:2160-8407/ajnmmi1205003

Review Article False-positive uptake on radioiodine whole-body scintigraphy: physiologic and pathologic variants unrelated to thyroid cancer Jong-Ryool Oh, Byeong-Cheol Ahn Department of Nuclear Medicine, Kyungpook National University School of Medicine and Hospital, Daegu, South Korea Received May 17, 2012; accepted June 22, 2012; Epub July 10, 2012; Published July 30, 2012 Abstract: Radioiodine whole-body scintigraphy (WBS), which takes advantage of the high avidity of radioiodine in the functioning thyroid tissues, has been used for detection of differentiated thyroid cancer. Radioiodine is a sensitive marker for detection of thyroid cancer; however, radioiodine uptake is not specific for thyroid tissue. It can also be seen in healthy tissue, including thymus, breast, liver, and gastrointestinal tract, or in benign diseases, such as cysts and inflammation, or in a variety of benign and malignant non-thyroidal tumors, which could be mistaken for thyroid cancer. In order to accurately interpret radioiodine scintigraphy results, one must be familiar with the normal physiol-ogic distribution of the tracer and frequently encountered physiologic and pathologic variants of radioiodine uptake. This article will provide a systematic overview of potential false-positive uptake of radioiodine in the whole body and illustrate how such unexpected findings can be appropriately evaluated. Keywords: Differentiated thyroid cancer, radioiodine, I-131, I-123, whole-body scintigraphy, false-positive, physiologic uptake, pathologic uptake

False-positive uptakes on radioiodine scintigraphy

363 Am J Nucl Med Mol Imaging 2012;2(3):362-385

anatomical imaging, available biochemical data, clinical history, and physical examination. The objectives of this article are to describe the mechanism and distribution of radioiodine up-take, list and discuss normal physiologic vari-ants, list and discuss benign and malignant pathologic causes, and suggest interpretative points for use in differential diagnosis of un-usual radioiodine uptake in WBS. Physiology of iodine and the thyroid gland In order to better understand the physiology of radioiodine uptake, a thorough understanding of the relationship between iodine and the thy-roid gland is important. Iodine is an element with a high atomic number, 53, and is an essen-tial component of hormones produced by the thyroid gland [10]. The recommended daily in-take of iodine is 150 μg. Absorption of almost all ingested iodine (>90%) from occurs rapidly; it is distributed in the extracellular iodine pool, which it leaves via transport into the thyroid gland or by renal excretion (Figure 1) [10, 11]. In its organic form, iodine is converted mostly to iodide prior to absorption. Exchange of plasma iodide with iodide in red blood cells occurs rap-idly, whereas exchange of iodide between ex-tracellular compartments occurs both rapidly and slowly [12]. The kidneys account for more than 90% of iodide excreted from the body. Io-dide is also secreted from the blood into the colon; however, the fecal route contributes only about 1% of total iodide clearance from the body [12]. The cellular mechanism for iodine uptake in thyroid follicular cells is illustrated in Figure 2. NIS on the apical membrane of enterocytes me-diates active iodide uptake. This active, energy-requiring process can lead to concentration of iodide in thyrocytes, some 20-40-fold above its level in the circulation [2]. Within the follicular cells, iodide moves toward the apical mem-brane to enter into the follicular lumen via pen-drin, a membrane iodide-chloride co-transporter; it is then oxidized to iodine by per-oxidase [10, 11]. Thyroid hormones are pro-duced in the thyroid gland by oxidation, organifi-cation, and coupling processes, and are finally released into the blood-stream for their action which is an essential for the regulation of a large number of bodily functions, e.g., energy expenditure and metabolic rate [2]. The majority of thyroid hormones in the thyroid gland and

plasma are levothyroxine (T4). Most T4 is con-verted to triiodothyronine (T3), a more metaboli-cally more active form, by deiodination in liver, skeletal muscle, kidney, brain, and other tis-sues, while the rest is conjugated with sulfate and glucuronide in the liver, excreted in bile, and partially hydrolyzed in the bowel [11]. This could be a possible reason that diffuse hepatic uptake of radioiodine is frequently observed in WBS.

Figure 1. Simplified diagram of the metabolic circuit of iodine. Iodine (I) ingested orally is absorbed from the small bowel into the circulating iodine pool. Ap-proximately one fifth of the iodine in the pool is re-moved by the thyroid gland and surplus iodine is rapidly excreted by the kidney and bowel. In the thy-roid gland, iodine is used in production of thyroid hormones (Hr), which act in peripheral tissues. Io-dine released from thyroid hormones re-enters the circulating iodine pool [10].



Properties of radioiodines Iodine-131 I-131 is produced in a nuclear reactor by neu-tron bombardment of natural tellurium (Te-127) and decays by beta emission to xenon-133 (Xe-133), with a half-life of 8.02 days; it also emits gamma emissions (Table 1). It most often (89% of the time) expends its 971 keV of decay en-ergy by transforming into the stable Xe-131, in two steps; gamma decay rapidly following after beta decay. Beta particles with a maximal en-ergy of 606 keV (89% abundance, others 248–807 keV) and 364 keV gamma rays (81% abun-dance, others 723 keV) are the primary emis-sions of I-131 decay. I-131 is administered orally with activities of 1–5 mCi or less. As a result of data suggesting that stunning

(decreased uptake of the therapeutic dose of I-131 by the residual functioning thy-roid tissue or tumor due to cell death or dysfunction caused by the activity ad-ministered for diagnostic imaging) is less likely at the lower activity range, many prefer a range of 1–2 mCi. However, a higher rate of detection of iodine concen-trating tissues has been reported with higher dos-ages [13]. Iodine-123 I-123 is produced in a cyclo-tron by proton irradiation of enriched Xe-124 in a cap-sule. Decay of I-123 to Te-123 occurs by electron cap-ture, with a half-life of 13.22 hours and gamma radiation is emitted with predominant energies of 159 keV (the gamma ray primarily used for imaging) and 127 keV. Compared with I-131, I-123 is mainly a gamma emitter with a high counting rate, and provides a higher lesion-to -background s ignal , thereby improving the sensi-tivity and quality of imaging.

With the same administered activity, I-123 deliv-ers an absorbed radiation dose that is approxi-mately one-fifth that of I-131 to the thyroid tis-sue, thereby lessening the likelihood of stunning from imaging. I-123 is administered orally with activities of 0.4–5.0 mCi, which may allow avoidance of stunning [13, 14]. Iodine-124 I-124 is a proton-rich isotope of iodine produced in a cyclotron by numerous nuclear reactions; it decays to Te-124 with a half-life of 4.18 days. Its modes of decay include: 74.4% electron cap-ture and 25.6% positron emission. It emits gamma radiation with energies of 511 and 602 keV [15]. I-124 is administered intravenously with activities of 0.5–2.0 mCi for detection of metastatic lesions or assessment of the radia-

Figure 2. Cellular mechanism for iodine uptake in thyroid follicular cells. This process commences with uptake of iodide from the capillary into follicular cells of the thyroid gland. This process occurs against chemical and electrical gradients via sodium iodide symporter (NIS) located in the basal membrane of follicular cells. Increased intracellular sodium is pumped out by the action of Na+/K+ ATPase. The iodide within the follicular cell moves toward the apical membrane to enter into the follicular lumen and is then oxidized to iodine by peroxidase. Organification of the iodine follows oxidation by iodination of tyro-sine residues present within the thyroglobulin (TG) molecule, and the iodine stays in the follicle until it is released into the circulation as thyroid hormones. Thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) activates the follicular cell via TSH recep-tor (TSH-R) and increases the expression of NIS and the TG [10].



tion dose related to I-131 therapy. Compared to radioiodine gamma scintigraphy, significantly greater sensitivity and spatial resolution can be achieved using I-124 positron emission tomo-graphy, leading to improved detection of resid-ual or recurrent thyroid cancer. And, it can be used for patient-specific radiation dosimetry for radioiodine treatment [16]. Iodine-125 I-125, which is produced in nuclear reactor by neutron capture in irradiated xenon gas (Xe-124), disintegrates by electron capture via the excited level of 35 keV of Te-125 into the ground state of Te-125. It also emits x-rays and Auger electrons, as well as gamma rays. Be-cause of its relatively long half-life (59.39 days), I-125 is preferred for radioimmunoassay or other in vitro assays, and brachytherapy for sev-eral solid tumors, including brain tumor, pros-tate cancer, and head and neck cancer [17-20]. Owing to its low gamma energy, I-125 is not suitable for whole-body gamma camera imag-ing. Several authors reported regarding the treatment of hyperthyroidism using I-125 in 1970's, however, this was not the case in clini-cal practice [21]. Physiologic radioiodine uptake Ectopic thyroid tissue Ectopic thyroid tissue is the result of a failure of

migration of the thyroid gland, which begins at embryonic day 24. An endodermal diverticulum from the median plate of the floor of the pharyn-geal gut is formed; this diverticulum then de-scends in the midline, from the foramen cecum to the final location of the thyroid gland, anteri-orly to the pre-trachea and larynx [22]. The in-nate ability to trap iodine and produce thy-roglobulin is shared by ectopic thyroid tissues and normal thyroid tissues, observance of ec-topic thyroid tissues in radioiodine WBS is a common false-positive finding [10, 23, 24]. They are frequently found as a lingual, sublin-gual thyroid, thyroglossal duct cyst, intratracheal and mediastinal thyroid. They can also be lo-cated in both supra- and subdiaphragmatic or-gans, including lung, heart (struma cordis), ad-renal glands, gallbladder, duodenum, ovary (struma ovarii), pancreas and intestine [22]. Simultaneous presentation of two ectopic foci, such as lingual and perihyoid, or lingual and porta hepatis can occur [22, 25]. Recognition of the location and nature of ectopic thyroid tissue can minimize misinterpretation as metastatic disease. Non-thyroidal tissue Although the abilities to trap iodine and produce thyroglobulin are unique features of thyroid tis-sues, physiological uptake of radioiodine can also be observed in a variety of non-thyroidal tissues (Figure 3 and 4). Two main causes of uptake include functional NIS expression and

Table 1. Properties of radioiodines (iodine isotopes) I-131 I-123 I-124 I-125 Production Nuclear reactor Cyclotron Cyclotron Nuclear reactor

Decay mode β- decay Electron capture β+ decay Electron capture

Physical half life 8.02 days 13.22 hours 4.18 days 59.39 days

Gamma energy (keV) 364 159 511 35

β energy (keV) 606 (maximum) - - -

Typical administered activity, mCi (MBq)

Imaging: 1-5 (37-185) Treatment: 30-200 (1,110-7,400)

0.4-5 (15-185) (19-74) -

Advantages - Low costs - Availability for treat-ment

- Good image quality - No stunning effect

- Suitability for positron emission tomography - Superiority for do-simetry

- Availability for in vitro assays - Availability for brachytherapy

Disadvantages - Poor image quality - Stunning effect - Necessity of radiation safety for caregivers

- High costs - Relatively short half life

- High costs - Limited for use in whole-body imaging



metabolism related to or the retention of ex-creted iodine. Expression of NIS in salivary and lacrimal glands, stomach, choroid plexus, ciliary body of the eye, skin, placenta, lactating mam-

mary gland, thymus, and, to a lesser extent, the prostate, ovary, adrenal gland, lung, and heart has been demonstrated [4, 6]. Liver is regarded as the major organ for metabo-lism of radioiodinated thy-roglobulin released from functioning thyroid tissues [26]. Retention of radioio-dine can occur as a result of structural or functional changes in any part of the body located along the route of radioiodine excre-tion or blood pooling (Table 2). Breast is the one of major organs expressing NIS. Iodine accumulation in the lactating breast has been recognized for 60 years and is now regarded as a usual finding in postpar-tum patients [27]. Once the NIS gene was cloned and become available for study, expression of NIS on the basolateral mem-brane of alveolar cells in mammary glands and marked induction during lactation were demon-strated [28, 29]. Bakheet et al. [30] conducted an analysis of patterns of radioiodine uptake in lac-tating breasts on 20 ra-dioiodine scintigraphic images. They identified four patterns of uptake: "full" (most common), "focal", "crescent", and "irregular". Uptake was asymmetric in 60% (left > right in 45%, right > left in 15%), symmetric in 25%, and unilateral in 15% of cases. Recognition of

those patterns and clinical history is helpful to interpretation of breast uptake on radioiodine scintigraphy (Figure 5). However, breast uptake that presents with an atypical pattern and/or is

Figure 3. Schematic presentation of the locations of physiologic uptake and possible sources of contamination of radioiodine whole-body scan (WBS) [10].

Figure 4. Physiologic uptakes of radioiodine in the whole body; A - planar scinti-graphy, B - SPECT/CT. Radioiodine uptakes in nasal secretion (1), parotid gland (2), dental prosthesis (3), remnant thyroglossal duct (4), remnant thyroid tissue (5), liver (6), and colon (7) are observed. The Hybrid SPECT/CT imaging helps recognize the exact localization of the radioiodine uptakes.



Table 2. Physiologic radioiodine uptake Region Mechanism of radioiodine uptake Reference Head and Neck

Ectasia Common carotids Blood stasis and reverse flow [48] Parotid gland duct Retention of saliva [54] Epiphora Retention of tear due to nasolacrimal duct obstruction [55] Nasolacrimal sac cyst Passive diffusion and retention of tear [130] Thyroglossal duct Functional NIS expression [131] Prosthetic denture Unclear, retention of saliva [56]

Chest Breast

Non-feeding Functional NIS expression [31, 132] Feeding Lactation of radioiodine, enhanced functional NIS expression [133-135] Hyperprolactinemia Enhanced functional NIS expression in breast tissue caused by prolactinoma in the

pituitary gland [32]

Thymus Functional NIS expression and iodine concentration in Hassall’s bodies [33-39, 136] Respiratory tract The use of local aerosol medication because of the chronic pulmonary disease [57] Esophageal retention Retention of saliva and/or refluxed gastric juice

Achalasia [137] Zenker’s diverticulum [138-140] Epiphrenic diverticulum [141] Esophageal scarring + post-radiation scarring [142]

Thoracic aortic aneurysm Retention of radioiodine in blood pool [49] Pectus excavatum Displaced cardiac blood pool by deformity [51] Hiatal hernia Functional NIS expression and gastric secretion [143, 144] Cysts Passive diffusion (or partially active transport) and retention of radioiodine Pleuropericardial cyst [145] Bronchogenic cyst [112, 146] Thymic cyst [147] Breast cyst [148]

Abdomen and pelvis Liver Absorption of radioiodinated thyroglobulin released from functioning thyroid tissue

[26], delayed hepatic excretion and functional NIS expression in the intrahepatic bile ducts [42]

[26, 42]

Gallbladder and biliary tract Delayed hepatic excretion and functional NIS expression in the gallbladder mucosa and bile ducts

[42, 62, 63, 66]

Stomach Gastric volvulus Retention of gastric secretions [64] Intestine

Meckel’s diverticulum Functional NIS expression [60] Colonic scar Unclear, appendectomy before 31 years ago [67] Appendix Retention of intestinal secretions [69]

Pelvocalyceal diverticulum or dilation

Retention of urine [61, 70]

Ectopic kidney Physiologic urine activity and/or urine retention [65, 149] Uterus and vagina Retention of menstrual blood [52, 53] Gestational sac Iodine transport from mother to fetus

Functional NIS expression in placenta [45]

Cysts Passive diffusion (or partially active transport) and retention of radioiodine Hepatic cyst [75-77] Renal cyst [71, 72, 74, 78]

Ovarian endometriosis cyst [73] Epithelial cyst in mesentery [79] Others Bone marrow Unclear, patient's athletic activities [80] Dilated greater saphenous vein Blood stasis and reverse flow [50] Sebaceous cyst Passive diffusion and retention of radioiodine: can be complicated by infection [100, 150] Contamination Tears Artificial eye [82, 149] Saliva Chewing tobacco and gum, lips [87, 91, 94] Nasal secretion Nose-ring sign [86]

Vomitus [27] Milk [93, 95]

Sweat Handkerchief sign, helmet sign, necklace sign [81, 83-85, 89-91, 97]

Urine [88]



clinically unexpected may be interpreted as lung metastases. The significance of radioiodine uptake by the non-lactating breast has also been studied by Hammami et al. [31]. Approximately 6% of all female patients presented with breast uptake unrelated to lactation and the patterns were similar to those observed during breast feeding. Expressible galactorrhea and moderately ele-vated prolactin levels were observed in 48% and 24% of cases, respectively. According to findings from a recent case report, a 52-year-old

female patient presenting with bilateral increased breast uptake was found to have hyperprolactinemia caused by prolactinoma in the pituitary gland [32]. En-hanced NIS expression caused by hyperprolactine-mia or individual variations might be a possible mecha-nism of radioiodine uptake in non-lactating breast. Hammami et al. [31] sug-gested the cautious interpre-tation of radioiodine uptake in the breast when: (a) A history of breastfeeding is not obtained or occurrence of breast uptake without breastfeeding is not ac-knowledged, (b) The uptake is irregular or unilateral, (c) There is a coexisting lung (or

other) metastasis, (d) There is a coexisting ele-vated thyroglobulin level but an otherwise unre-markable scan. Thymic radioiodine uptake is not an unusual finding on radioiodine WBS (Figure 6). In a re-view of 175 patients, thymic uptake was ob-served in 1.2% (4/325) of diagnostic scans and 1.5% (3/200) of post-treatment scans in six patients [33]. Patients were females between the ages of 22 and 51 years at the time of diag-nosis. Wilson et al. observed that physiological thymic uptake was seldom apparent (with one

Figure 5. Physiologic radioiodine uptake in the breast; A and B - planar scintigra-phy, C - SPECT/CT. Unusual uptakes in lower thorax are observed in a non-lactating, 48 year-old female (A, ar-rows). Following mammography and breast ultrasonography showed nega-tive results. This uptake can be more confidently recognized as physiologic change rather than lung metastasis by recognition of its specific patterns, bilat-eral and symmetric, and its anteriorly located position in lateral image (B), even though in the absence of SPECT/CT [10].

Figure 6. Physiologic uptake of radioiodine in the thymus and stomach; A – planar scintigraphy, B – SPECT/CT. An arrowhead-shaped radioiodine uptake in upper mediastinum is noted in a 16 year-old female (A, 1). SPECT/CT re-vealed it as physiologic uptake in the thymus (B, 1). The pattern of thymic uptake is either a diffuse or a dumbbell shape, and tends to become more evident in younger patients. A saclike radioiodine uptake in left upper abdo-men, which indicates physiologic radioiodine uptake in the stomach, is also noted (A, 2).



exception; the youngest) on the scan performed at 3-4 days but was clearly observed on the 7-day scan [34]. The pattern of uptake showed either a diffuse or a dumbbell shape. Overall consensus is that thymic uptake tends to be-come more evident on delayed imaging, with a therapeutic dose, in younger patients, and with less residual or metastatic thyroid tissues [33-39]. The mechanism of radioiodine uptake by the thymus is not yet fully understood. Autoradiogra-phy performed by Verminglio et al. [35] revealed localization of iodine uptake in the thymus to Hassall’s bodies, which are constituted by epithelial cells resembling keratinocytes. They suggested that this finding reflects the struc-tural similarity between cystic Hassall’s bodies and thyroid follicles. Although a capability of transport and concentration of iodine is weaker in the thymus, compared with that presented in the thyroid gland, the presence of NIS is a proven mechanism of radioiodine uptake in the thymus [40]. Following findings reported by Michigishi et al. [36] will be helpful in differentiating physiologic from malignant mediastinal uptake: (a) uptake that becomes more prominent with repeated treatment, (b) requirement of higher than usual iodine doses in order to visualize the area, (c) a young age, (d) a large thymus on CT, and (e) a low serum thyroglobulin level. Diffuse hepatic uptake of radioiodine is also a common finding on radioiodine WBS. Several authors have suggested that diffuse uptake of radioiodine by the liver is related to residual thyroid tissue or recurrent or persistent metas-tasis [26, 41]. According to Chung et al. [26], whose study included a large population, be-cause the liver is the major organ for the me-tabolism of thyroid hormones, this finding was explained by accumulation of radioiodinated thyroid hormones in patients with remnant thy-roid tissues. In patients without thyroid rem-nant, radioiodinated thyroglobulin released from functioning cancer tissue is regarded as the cause of diffuse hepatic uptake of radioiodine. However, other investigators have stated that diffuse hepatic uptake is a benign finding with-out clinical importance [42-44]. Tatar et al. [44] reported no significant association between liver uptake and uptake in the thyroid bed, the dose of radioiodine administered for ablation

therapy, thyroglobulin levels, age, stage of dis-ease, presence of local or distant metastases, recurrence, or survival. A more recent study of a larger population conducted by Omur et al [42] also revealed no correlation of hepatic uptake with serum thyroglobulin levels, thyroid remnant score, and presence of local or distant metas-tatic foci. Instead, of particular interest, hepatic uptake showed positive correlation with admin-istered doses of RAI, increased hepatic en-zymes, and hepatosteatosis. This finding sup-ports the concept that the presence of multiple metabolic factors is related to diffuse hepatic radioiodine uptake. They suggested that associ-ated changes in lipoproteins and hepatic en-zymes might have contributed to increased he-patic uptake in patients with hepatosteatosis. The increase of hepatic enzymes is an indica-tion that delayed action of deiodinase may re-sult in delayed excretion of iodine taken up by hepatocytes and consequent higher liver reten-tion. NIS can also contribute to hepatic radioio-dine uptake through mediation of active trans-port in association with iodine in intrahepatic bile ducts. Studies of physiologic radioiodine uptake in the liver are summarized in Table 3. Obviously, he-patic visualization tends to occur more fre-quently in post-therapy scanning, compared with diagnostic scanning, and delayed scanning (8-10 days), compared with early scanning (4-5 days). According to our observations, in studies where an early scan was performed, hepatic visualization appears to be associated with functioning thyroid tissues, whereas it was not in studies performed using a delayed scan (Table 3). This discrepancy may be owing to differences in biological characteristics for trap-ping or excretion of radioiodine in remnant thy-roid tissue, metastatic thyroid tissue, and liver with passage of time. The gestational sac can also be a site of radioio-dine accumulation [45]. Although the molecular mechanisms of iodine transport from mother to fetus are not clear, iodide and small amounts of thyroid hormones are transferred through the placenta from mother to fetus. Functional NIS expression in normal human placenta, preferen-tially in cytotrophoblastic cells, can also be a cause of radioiodine uptake in the gestational sac [46, 47]. Physiologic dilatation of the vessel, gut, duct, and ureter, regardless of the presence of ob-



struction, causes retention of body fluid contain-ing radioiodine. Vascular dilatation of common carotids [48], thoracic aorta [49], and greater saphenous vein [50] have been reported. Dis-placed blood pool activity associated with pec-tus excavatum can also be misinterpreted as abnormal radioiodine uptake in the chest [51]. Menstruation history, even in young patients who have not yet reached menarche, should be considered in evaluation of unusual pelvic up-take of radioiodine [52, 53]. Retention of tears, saliva, gastric juice, bronchial secretion, bile, intestinal secretion, and urine can be related to a specific disease or clinical situation, such as epiphora, use of aerosol, achalasia, diverticu-lum, hiatal hernia, gastric volvulus, and ectopic

kidney (Figure 7) [48, 54-70]. Meckel’s diver-ticulum has an additional mechanism of radioio-dine uptake via NIS, which is originally ex-pressed in gastric mucosa. Various cystic structures, including the nasolac-rimal sac, pleuropericardial, bronchogenic, thymic, breast, hepatic, renal, ovarian, epithelial and sebaceous cysts are also known to show false-positive findings on radioiodine WBS (Figure 8) [71-79]. Entry of radioiodine into cysts occurs via passive diffusion or partially active transport; then, due to the slow exchange of water and chemical elements between the cysts and their surrounding extracellular/extravascular environment, it becomes trapped

Table 3. Review of diffuse hepatic uptake of radioiodine Reference Diagnostic scan Post-treatment scan Correlation with

residual or metastatic thyroid tissue

Incidence of hepatic visu-alization

Dose mCi (MBq), scanning time

Incidence of hepatic visuali-zation

Dose mCi (GBq), scanning time (mean)

Ziessman et al. (1987) [41]

22.0% (9/41) 2-10 (74-370), 48 hours

74.7% (14/19) 30-200 (1.1-7.4), 3-7 days

Yes

Rosenbaum et al. (1988) [43]

13.2% (5/38) 10 (370), 72 hours 52.2% (15/29) 80-150 (3.0-5.6), 7 days

Not always

Chung et al. (1997) [26]

22.7% (65/300)

2-10 (74-370), 48 hours

72.0%, (580/806)

30-200 (1.1-7.4), 3-5 days

Yes

Tatar et al. (2001) [44]

0% (0/118) 2-5 (74-185), 72 hours

96.4% (135/141)

30-200 (1.1-7.4), 3-21 (8.3) days

No

Omur et al. (2009) [42]

NA NA 96.5% (863/894)

75-200 (2.8-7.4), 6-13 (10) days

No

NA, not assessed. All scans were performed with I-131

Figure 7. Physiologic uptake of radioiodine in the gallbladder and intestines; A – planar scintigra-phy, B – SPECT/CT. Focal and segmental uptakes in right upper and left abdomen are noted (A, 1-2). SPECT/CT revealed them as physiologic uptakes unrelated to metastatic disease in gallbladder (1) and intestines (2). Secretion and retention of radioiodinated body fluid along the biliary tract and intestines can be causes of those unexpected uptakes of ra-dioiodine.



within the cysts. Although the mechanism is unclear, diffuse radioiodine uptake in bone mar-row (bilateral femur and tibia) of patients in-volved in heavy running activity has also been reported [80]. Contamination by physiological secretion External contamination by physiological or pathological body secretions or excretions can result in positive radioiodine uptake, which mimics metastatic involvement of DTC (Table 2) [23, 24, 27, 81-97]. Sweat, breast milk, urine, vomitus and nasal, tracheobronchial, lacrimal, salivary secretions and feces contain radioio-dine and their contamination on hair, skin, or clothing can be misinterpreted as metastasis of thyroid cancer (Figure 3 and 9). Any focus of radioiodine uptake that cannot be explained by physiological or pathological causation must also be suspected as arising from contamina-tion by secretions. Fortunately, contamination is usually easily recognized by its pattern; acquisi-tion of images should be performed after re-moval of the contamination using decontami-nating procedures or removal of stained cloth-ing. However, unusual patterns of contamina-tion might occur and suspicion of the uptake as contamination would be difficult. Patients' peculiar physical characteristics or odd habits produce extraordinary patterns of con-tamination. Careful preparation of patients, in-cluding image acquisition in a clean gown after showering, can help to minimize false-positive scanning results due to contamination. Con-tamination is almost always superficial [23, 24],

therefore, use of lateral and/or oblique views to give a third dimension to the scan may aid in identification of the contamination. In addition, use of the single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) image alone or the SPECT image fused with the anatomical image, which provides detailed information on the anatomic location of uptake sites, can be the best way to

Figure 8. Physiologic uptake of ra-dioiodine in a simple cyst of the right kidney; A – planar scintigraphy, B – SPECT/CT, C – abdominal CT. Focal tracer uptake is noted at the right side of the abdomen (A, arrows). SPECT/CT (B) and abdominal CT (C) images revealed it as physiologic radioiodine uptake in a simple cyst of the right kidney. Communication be-tween the cyst and the urinary tract, or secretion of radioiodine by the lining epithelium of the cyst can be causes of radioiodine uptake in the cystic structure.

Figure 9. Contamination of radioiodine by hair in two patients (A-B and C-D). Unexpected radioiodine up-takes in the outside (A) and on (C) the skull are ob-served (arrows). On the additional image after rolling up the hair (B and D), the uptakes were moved up-ward (arrows). The change or disappearance of up-take on additional image after rolling up the hair, showering, or removal of stained clothing can help to differentiate unusual uptake by the radioiodine con-tamination from pathologic condition. Note: Delayed scan of second patient (D) was performed 7 days after initial scan (C). S, scalp; O, oral cavity [10].



accurately determine that contamination is the reason for the uptake. Pathologic radioiodine uptake: non-tumoral dis-ease Inflammation, which can be caused by any harmful stimuli, such as infection, trauma, or infarction, is the major cause of non-tumoral pathologic radioiodine uptake (Table 4, Figure

10). Inflamed tissues suffer a cascade of bio-logical events, including increased blood flow and capillary permeability. Increased permeabil-ity can result in an abundance of cells in tissue or vessels, and stasis of radioiodinated blood can also occur due to an increase in the con-centration of cells within blood. Mediator molecules also alter blood vessels in order to permit migration of leukocytes outside

Table 4. Pathologic uptake unrelated to tumor Region Mechanism of radioiodine uptake Reference Head and Neck

Inflammation Increased perfusion and vasodilatation, and enhanced capil-lary permeability

Folliculitis in scalp [151] Sialoadenitis [152, 153] Sinusitis [149, 154] Dacryocysitis [149] Mucocele Accumulation of inflammatory exudates and mucous secreted

by the hypertrophied glands and mucinous cells

Frontal sinus mucocele [101, 102] Laryngocele [155, 156] Trauma Increased perfusion and vasodilatation, and enhanced capil-

lary permeability

Subdural hematoma [157] Tracheostomy site [158, 159] Cranial metallic suture [160, 161]

Chest Inflammation Increased perfusion and vasodilatation, and enhanced capil-

lary permeability

Acute respiratory infection + accumulation of tracheobronchial secretions in the airway [103, 162] Pulmonary tuberculosis + accumulation of tracheobronchial secretions in the dam-

aged lung region [105]

Rheumatoid lung disease [163] Pulmonary aspergilloma + the endotoxins or enzymes released locally by the fungus,

which cause cellular damage to the inner lining of the fungus ball cavity

[164, 165]

Bronchiectasis Accumulation of bronchial secretions [104, 166] Myocardial infarction Increased perfusion and vasodilatation, and enhanced capil-

lary permeability [168]

Pericardial and pleural effu-sion

Pathologic transudates or exudates [169-172]

Chest wall after needle bi-opsy

Increased perfusion and vasodilatation, and enhanced capil-lary permeability by the tissue trauma

[173]

Abdomen and pelvis Cholecystitis Inflammatory reaction and retention of radioiodine in the leu-

kocytes/ bile retention/ mucinous secretion [100, 106]

Others Rheumatoid arthritis during acupuncture treatment

Increased perfusion and vasodilatation, and enhanced capil-lary permeability

[174]

Post-traumatic superficial scabs

Inflammatory reaction after trauma and retention of radioio-dine in the leukocytes of post-traumatic clots

[99]



of the vessels into the tissue. As part of their bactericidal effect, leukocytes are known to in-duce iodide organification by means of a mye-loperoxidase [98]. Therefore, retention of ra-dioiodine in leukocytes of posttraumatic clots or tissues may also explain various reports of false-positive uptake in sites of inflammation (Figure 11) [99, 100]. Secretion of mucin containing iodide salts has also been suggested as another possible mechanism of iodine accumulation associated with chronic inflammatory conditions in bron-chus, gallbladder, or mucocele [101-106]. Pathologic radioiodine uptake: benign tumor Although the mechanism is not fully understood, unexpected radioiodine uptakes in diverse be-nign tumors having different histopathologic natures has been reported (Table 5). Functional NIS expression in parotid tumors, such as Warthin’s tumor or oncocytoma, breast fi-broadenoma (Figure 12), ectopic thyroid tis-sues, such as struma cordis and struma ovarii, other types of ovarian tumors, and teratoma has been suggested [107-115]. Using immuno-histochemical staining, Berger et al. [116] dem-onstrated the presence of high levels of func-tionally active NIS protein not only in normal breast tissue but also in a benign fibroade-noma. However, in a case of cystic meso-thelioma [117], results of immunohistochemical staining did not indicate the presence of NIS

Figure 10. Pathologic uptake of ra-dioiodine in a pulmonary fungus ball; A – planar scintigraphy, B – chest CT. Intense tracer uptake which is consid-ered as solitary pulmonary metastasis is observed in left lower lung field (A, arrows). Following chest CT revealed about 1.7 cm-sized cavitary lesion containing non-enhancing mural nod-ule (B, arrows). These findings sug-gested a pulmonary fungus ball rather than metastasis. This patient was clini-cally diagnosis to have pulmonary as-pergilloma based on radiologic fea-tures coupled with serologic evidence of precipitating antibodies to Aspergil-lus species [164].

Figure 11. Pathologic uptake of radioiodine in a su-perficial scab; A, B, and C – planar scintigraphy, D – photograph. Localized uptake of radioiodine is ob-served in left lower leg (A and B, arrows). On the lat-eral view, the uptake is considered to be located in anterior superficial portion of left lower leg (C, arrow). This finding suggests that the unusual uptake might not be related to skeletal metastasis. On physical examination, a superficial scab in the healing process of skin wound was detected in the shin of left leg (D, arrow). Iodine organification by leukocytes as part of their bactericidal effect can be the cause of unex-pected radioiodine uptake in posttraumatic clots or tissues [10].



Figure 12. Pathologic radioiodine uptake in benign fibroadenoma of the breast; A – planar scintigraphy, B – MR mam-mography. Post-therapy scintigraphy, performed 4 days after a second course of I-131 treatment, showed mild iodine uptake in the former thyroid bed as well as focal dystrophic radioiodine uptake in the region of the right breast (A, arrow). MR mammography showed a lesion in the right breast measuring 1 cm in diameter with slow, and at the bor-ders pronounced rise of signal intensity over time. No other focal breast lesions were detected. The figure shows the substraction image after and before contrast media injection, clearly demonstrating the contrast enhanced focal lesion in the right breast (B, arrow). Following histopathological examination revealed that the lesion was a benign fibroadenoma showing marked NIS-specific immunoreactivity. Adapted from ref. [116], with permission from Elsevier.

Table 5. Pathologic uptake related to benign tumor Region Mechanism of radioiodine uptake Reference Head and Neck

Meningioma Brain edema or high vascularity [118, 119] Cavernous angioma Unclear, possibly high vascularity [120] Warthin’s tumor Active transport in salivary glands [107-109] Oncocytoma of the parotid gland Increased vascularity, capillary permeability, and active I-

131 transport [110]

Osteoid osteoma of nasal bone Unclear, possibly high vascularity [125] Chest

Breast fibroadenoma Functional NIS expression [116] Cystic mesothelioma Passive diffusion and retention of radioiodine [117]

Struma cordis Functional NIS expression [115] Abdomen and pelvis Hepatic hemangioma Intravascular blood pooling and transcapillary escape of

iodine with interstitial retention [122]

Neurilemoma Unclear [175] Littoral cell angioma of spleen Prolonged pooling of I-131-laden blood within abnormal

cardiovascular structures [121]

Uterine myoma Unclear [176] Benign ovarian tumor

Struma ovarii Functional NIS expression [111, 177] Mucinous cystadenoma Functional NIS expression and fluid retention [112] Serous cystadenofibroma Functional NIS expression and fluid retention [114]

Rectal wall teratoma Functional NIS expression [178] Others Vertebral hemangioma Intravascular blood pooling and transcapillary escape of

iodine with interstitial retention [123, 124]



expression. It can be speculated that passive diffusion alone might be a mechanism of ra-dioiodine uptake in certain benign tumors. Because meningioma with or without brain edema [118, 119], cavernous angioma [120], littoral cell angioma [121], hepatic [122] and vertebral [123, 124] hemangiomas, and osteoid osteoma [125] share the property that presents high vascularity, it can also be regarded as an-other mechanism of radioiodine uptake in a variety of benign tumors. Pathologic radioiodine uptake: malignant tumor Radioiodine accumulation has been reported in a variety of cancers, either primary or metasta-sis, involving the following organs: lung (adenocarcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, large and small cell carcinoma, and bron-

chioloalveolar cell carcinoma), breast, stomach and cervix (adenocarcinoma), retroperitoneum (malignant fibrous histiocytoma), and liver and bone (metastatic adenocarcinoma) (Table 6). Expression of NIS is known to occur in more than 80% of breast cancer tissue, although the fraction of tumors that functionally concentrate iodine is likely to be much lower than that in thyroid cancer [29, 126]. NIS has also been reported in cancers involving bladder, cervix, oropharynx, colon, lung, pancreas, prostate, skin, stomach, ovary, and endometrium [127]. Of particular interest, absence of NIS was ob-served in normal lung alveolar tissue, yet posi-tive NIS expression was observed in approxi-mately two thirds of lung adenocarcinomas and squamous cell carcinomas [127]. This suggests that a cellular or subcellular change in iodine affinity as a consequence of malignant transfor-

Table 6. Pathologic uptake related to non-thyroidal malignant tumor Region Mechanism of radioiodine uptake Reference Chest

Primary lung cancer Functional NIS expression and tumoral inflamma-tory change

Adenocarcinoma [179-181] Squamous cell carcinoma [182]

Large cell carcinoma [183] Small cell carcinoma [184]

Bronchioloalveolar cell carcinoma + glandular secretion by mucinous lesion [185] Metastatic lung carcinoma Functional NIS expression and tumoral inflamma-

tory change

Cervical adenocarcinoma [186] Struma ovarii [187] Breast cancer Functional NIS expression and tumoral inflamma-

tory change [126, 188]

Abdomen and pelvis Metastatic hepatic tumor Functional NIS expression and tumoral inflamma-

tory change

Gastric adenocarcinoma [189] Struma ovarii [190-192] Malignant fibrous histiocytoma in

retroperitoneum Unclear, tumoral inflammatory process [193]

Malignant struma ovarii Functional NIS expression and tumoral inflamma-tory change

Ovarian tumor [194, 195] Peritoneal seeding [191, 196]

Others Metastatic bone tumor Functional NIS expression and tumoral inflamma-

tory change

Lung adenocarcinoma [180] Digestive adenocarcinoma [189, 197]



Table 7. Differential diagnosis according to the location and nature of radioiodine uptake Location Nature Differential diagnosis Additional findings Upper head Diffuse Perspiration in scalp or wig

Focal Brain or skull metastasis from thyroid cancer Not uncommon Eye metastasis from thyroid cancer Very uncommon [198, 199] Meningioma Half-lunar shaped Hematoma Crescent shaped Cavernous angioma Metallic suture Multiple in rows

Lower head Diffuse Physiologic accumulation of saliva Focal Skull metastasis from thyroid cancer Not uncommon

Salivary gland metastasis from thyroid cancer Very uncommon [199, 200] Mucocele and sinusitis Sialoadenitis Unilateral or bilateral Benign salivary tumors More localized than sialoadenitis Ectopic thyroid tissue Midline Various ductal retention and cysts

Outside of the body

Contamination to hair

Neck Diffuse Large amounts of remnant thyroid tissue Focal Metastatic lymph node and/or remnant thyroid tissue Common, single or multiple

Ectopic thyroid tissue and thyroglossal duct Midline Tracheostomy site Anterior, midline Contamination in necklace or scarf

Lung Diffuse Metastasis from thyroid cancer Not uncommon Pleural effusion Unilateral or bilateral: erect or decubitus view is

helpful Inflammatory lung disease Diffuse or perihilar distribution

Focal Metastasis from thyroid cancer Not uncommon Bronchiectasis Nodular, branching or perihilar distribution Inflammatory granuloma Primary or metastatic lung malignancy

Mediasti-num

Diffuse Physiologic thymic uptake Diffuse or dumbbell-shaped Pericardial effusion Halo-like uptake

Linear Esophageal retention Delayed imaging after water ingestion is helpful. Aortic aneurism Tracheal secretion Branching uptake

Focal Metastatic lymph node from thyroid cancer Not uncommon Ectopic thyroid tissue Esophageal diverticulum

Breast Diffuse Lactating or non-lactating breast Bilateral or unilateral Hyperprolactinemia Intense and relatively well localized

Focal Metastasis from thyroid cancer Very uncommon [201-203] Cysts or benign tumors Primary breast malignancy

Liver Diffuse Indicator of the presence of functioning thyroid tissue or hepatic dysfunction or hepatosteatosis

Focal Metastasis from thyroid cancer Uncommon [204-207] Cyst or hemangioma Biliary retention with/without stone Normal or inflamed gallbladder Metastasis from other malignancies

Kidney Focal Metastasis from thyroid cancer Uncommon [208-210] Cysts Urine retention Unilateral and bilateral Ectopic kidney

Gastrointes-tinal tract

Diffuse or seg-mental

Physiologic uptake

Focal Physiologic uptake Meckel’s diverticulum Colonic metastasis from struma ovarii Extremely uncommon [211]

Uterus Focal Metastasis from thyroid cancer Extremely uncommon [212] Menstruation Intrauterine device Myoma

Ovary Focal Struma ovarii Cysts or benign tumors

Bone Diffuse Increased physical activity Bilateral, long bones Focal Metastasis from thyroid cancer Not uncommon, single or multifocal

Osteoid osteoma Hemangioma Vertebra

Extremities Diffuse Inflammatory disease Focal Skin or soft tissue metastasis from thyroid cancer Uncommon [199, 213]

Trauma, superficial scab Contamination

Multiple sites

Multifocal Metastases from thyroid cancer or struma ovarii Not uncommon Metastases from other malignancies (lung, cervical or gastric cancer)



mation leads to accumulation of radioiodine. Tumoral inflammatory response might also play a role in some parts of radioiodine uptake in malignant tumors. Inflammation is a well known microenvironment which is closely related with malignancies [128]. Summaries Almost 10 years have passed since previous researchers summarized extensively scattered reports in the literature involving cases of false-positive radioiodine uptake during surveillance of patients with DTC [23, 24]. Despite the in-comparable usefulness of radioiodine scintigra-phy, a wide variety of pitfalls, which negate its diagnostic confidence, have been consistently reported. By recognition of the exact localization of radioiodine uptake using emerging hybrid imaging, SPECT/CT, we can reduce the inci-dence of false-positive interpretation in planar WBS [129]. However, availability of SPECT/CT is still limited and some findings may remain am-biguous. Awareness of the nature and charac-teristics of radioiodine uptake, as described in Table 7, which provides a summarized review of unusual sites of metastasis and non-thyroidal uptake, might aid in differentiation of thyroidal and non-thyroidal, or benign and malignant up-take of radioiodine in the whole body. Conclusion In this review, physiology of the thyroid gland and a systemic overview of potential false-positive uptake of radioiodine in the whole body are provided along with illustrations and cases. By integrating the comprehension of physiology and characteristics of radioiodine uptake out-lined in this article with anatomical imaging, biochemical data, and clinical findings, physi-cians can be more confident in establishing proper management for patients with DTC using radioiodine WBS. Acknowledgement This research was financially supported by the Ministry of Knowledge Economy (MKE), Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology (KIAT), and Daegyeong Leading Industry Office through the Leading Industry Development for Economic Region, a Grant from the Nuclear Research & Development Program of the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Minis-

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