Clinical trial NCT03136328
Conditions: Neuroendocrine Tumors
Sponsor: Montefiore Medical Center
Start date: 2016-05-16; Completion date: 2017-03-01
Enrollment: 11 participants; Allocation: NA; Intervention model: SINGLE_GROUP

Brief summary:
The primary goal of the analysis is to estimate the diagnostic accuracy of Gallium 68 (68Ga) -DOTATOC PET/CT for detecting neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) compared to conventional imaging techniques such as Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and Computerized Tomography (CT). Participants with histologically and/or clinically confirmed and/or suspected NET will be enrolled.

Detailed description:
This is a prospective, Phase 2, single center study of participants with Neuroendocrine Tumors (NETs). Study participants will receive 68Ga-DOTATOC. DOTATOC is a somatostatin analogue that localizes on the somatostatin receptors expressed by NETs and is attached to a radioactive material called Gallium 68. Participants will undergo a PET/CT imaging study to investigate 68Ga-DOTATOC's suitability as a positron emission tomography (PET) imaging agent for NETs. The radiation (imaging) dose will be 111-185 megabecquerel (MBq) (3 - 5 mCi) ± 25%. All doses after labeling will be presented in buffered solution for intravenous injection. Imaging will start 90 ±30 minutes after injection.

Sensitivity and specificity of this imaging technique will be compared with those of conventional imaging modality including CT, MRI and In-111 Octreoscan performed within 6-12 months before or after PET/CT.

Arms: arm 1: Study participants will receive 68Ga-DOTATOC and undergo a PET/CT imaging study.
Interventions: intervention 1: 68Ga-DOTATOC
Intervention descriptions: intervention 1: The intervention is to administer 68Ga-DOTATOC PET/CT for detecting NET.

Protocol documents:
Prot_SAP_000.pdf: 
Version Amendment 1, dated 07.20.2016 
 
 
 
 
Diagnosis and staging of neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) utilizing 68Ga-DOTATOC PET-CT 
scan 
 
Document Date: 7/20/2016 
 
NCT03136328 
 
Protocol ID: 15-06-274 
 
 
 
 
 
Principal Investigator:  
Charito Love, M.D. 
 
Biostatistician: 
 
Mimi Kim, Sc.D. 
 
Study Site: 
 
 
Montefiore Medical Park 
1695A Eastchester Road 
Bronx, NY 10461 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 


2 
 
 
Table of Contents                                                                                 
 
 
1.0 
Objectives 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  3 
 
2.0 
Background and Rationale  
 
 
   
 
  3 
 
3.0 
Inclusion Criteria 
 
 
 
 
 
 
15 
 
4.0 
Exclusion Criteria 
 
 
 
 
 
 
15 
 
5.0 
Study Design  
 
 
 
 
 
 
15 
 
6.0 
Criteria for Study Termination 
 
 
 
 
17 
 
7.0 
Monitoring and Quality control/Assurance 
 
 
18 
 
8.0 
Patient Consent and peer review  
 
 
 
19 
 
9.0 
Data Safety & monitoring board 
 
 
 
 
19 
 
10.0 
Bibliography  
 
 
 
 
 
 
20 
 
11.0 
Signature page 
 
 
 
 
 
 
21 
 
12.0  
Appendix 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
(a) Certificate of Analysis of Vial1 & Vial2 and acceptance criteria 
 
(b) ABX Certificate of Analysis 
 
(c) Material Identification 
 
(d) 68Ga-DOTATOC binding affinity article 
 
(e) Reponse to CMC information request 
 
(f) Ga-DOTATOC Additional CMC Information Request Response 
 
(g) Chemistry manufacturing and Control data  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 


3 
 
 
1.0 Objectives 
 
1.1 Main objective: 
 
The primary goal of the analysis is to estimate the diagnostic accuracy of 68Ga-DOTATOC PET-
CT for detecting NET compared to conventional imaging techniques. 
 
1.2 Secondary objectives: 
 
We will assess the safety and tolerability of 68Ga-DOTATOC PET-CT by measuring the number 
of adverse events in patients receiving 68Ga-DOTATOC PET-CT. 
 
2.0 Background and Rationale 
 
Neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) are a heterogeneous group of rare neoplasms that originate from 
neuroendocrine cells. According to analysis of the National Cancer Institute Surveillance, 
Epidemiology and End Results data between 2003 to 2007, the incidence of NET is 3.56 cases 
per 100,000 (1). Compare this with incidence of colon and rectal cancer at 42.4 cases per 
100,000. These neoplasms are generally small in size and occur mostly in the gastrointestinal 
tract and pancreas (so called Gastro-entero-pancreatic NET), but can also occur in other tissues 
including thymus, lung, and other uncommon sites such as ovaries, heart and ear. These 
neoplasms can present as multiple primary tumors located in variable sites. Regardless of their 
primary site, NETs share histological, immunohistochemical and ultrastrucural features. NETs 
retain multi-potent differentiation capacities including the ability to produce and secrete a variety 
of metabolically active substances including amines, peptides and prostaglandins following 
activation from somatostatin, a naturally occuring hormone in the body responsible for controlling 
neuroendocrine cells. Symptoms of NETs are usually vague, nonspecific and vary by the affected 
organ. Non-functional NETs are not associated with any specific hormonal syndrome, instead, 
their clinical manifestations are similar to most solid tumours, i.e. causing mass-effect either 
inside the organ where the tumor is growing or pressuring adjacent organs and structures (2).  
 
The endocrine-related characteristics of NETs arise from the enterochromaffin and 
enterochromaffin-like cells of the gut. Pancreatic, enteric and unknown origins account for most 
NETs (>85%). Glucagonomas, VIPomas, and somatostinomas (pancreatic) are the rarest, the 
combined incidence accounting for only 2% of NETs (2-3).   
 
Imaging plays an important role in diagnosing and localization of NETs. The information 
generated by imaging can guide therapy, which includes medications (somatostatin analogues), 
chemotherapy and/or surgery (2-3). Surgery remains the first choice for therapy but in many 
cases, additional therapy is needed as many patients have metastatic disease by the time 
diagnosis is made.  
 
In nuclear medicine, imaging entails localization of a radiopharmaceutical, which is the agent that 
allows visualization of a normal or abnormal process, on imaging with using detectors. In the case 
of NETs, because they overexpressed multiple somatostatin receptors on their surfaces, imaging 
has been performed using a somatostatin analogue. The natural somatostatin has a half-life of 2-
3 minutes while a somatostatin analogue consisting of an 8 amino acid protein that represents the 
part of the naturally occurring somatostatin hormone that localizes to the somatostatin receptor 
(SSTR) has a half-life of 90 minutes. Thus, it is amenable for imaging. This analogue is attached 
to a radiopharamaceutical and upon localization to a somatostatin receptor on the surface of a 


4 
 
NET; the images obtained allow detection and localization of the NET (3-5). This 8-amino acid 
analogue is called Octreotide and has been attached to In-111, a gamma emitting 
radiopharmaceutical through a DTPA linker. The resulting agent is called In-111 Octreotide. In-
111 Octreotide is imageable on gamma camera available in many nuclear medicine facilities; this 
technique is widely known as Octreoscan. It has been approved for use in USA since 1989 (3-6). 
In-111, the radiopharmaceutical, has a long half-life of 2.8 days. There are advantages to a 
radiopharmaceutical with such long half-life in that it allows delayed imaging. Currently, imaging is 
accomplished by acquiring whole body images 4 hours after injection of In-111 Octreotide during 
which time there is normally no bowel activity and may allow detection of abnormal activity in the 
abdomen. The patient comes back 24 hours later whereby delayed whole body images and 
single photon emission tomography (SPECT) is performed. Because of the normal excretion of 
the agent into the bowel after 4 hours, it is often necessary to repeat the SPECT at 48-72 hours 
later to confirm that bowel activity moved. The availability of hybrid SPECT/CT has facilitated the 
distinction of normal bowel activity and abnormal tumor activity in some cases but not in all cases. 
This imaging procedure often requires multiple trips to the nuclear medicine imaging suite over 
few days (6).  
 
There are important disadvantages as well to a radiopharmaceutical with long half-life.  The long 
half-life involves higher radiation exposure to the patient. To circumvent this, only a very small 
amount of the radiopharmaceutical can be used often resulting in less than optimal images. 
Additionally, one can only use a small amount of the somatostatin analogue for the allowable 
amount of radiopharmaceutical contributing further to poor images. Another factor in poor 
detection of somatostatin receptors by In-111 Octreotide is the variable sensitivity of this agent to 
various forms of the receptors. Somatostatin receptor (SSTR) has 5 subtypes: 1-5. In-111-
Octreotide has high affinity to SSTR subtype 2 but has no affinity for SSTR 1 and SSTR 4, and 
low affinity to SSTR 3 and SSTR 5. Thus, the primary tumor is not identified in 20-50% of NETs. 
Additional reasons for the relatively high failure rate of detecting NETs include low sensitivity of 
gamma camera imaging technology so visualization of deep or small lesions can be impaired. 
Secondly, most somatostatin receptor-positive tumors express multiple SSTR subtypes 
simultaneously. Thirdly, even in the same patient, the SSTR expression is heterogeneous. Lastly, 
In-111 Octreotide only has 10 ug of the somatostatin analogue available for receptor localization 
(6). Thus, In-111 Octreotide may not always successfully demonstrate NETs.  
 
Combined positron emission tomography (PET) with CT (PET/CT) technology has proved its 
utility with F-18 FDG PET/CT imaging of more well-known or more common carcinomas such as 
lymphoma, breast, colon or lung cancers. The images obtained with a positron emitter using 
PET/CT technology provides exquisite resolution giving rise to better visualization and more 
accurate localization of a tumor and allows semiquantitative analysis of a molecular event in a 
tumor (7). In Europe, investigators found a way to optimize the use of somatostatin analogue by 
labeling it with a positron emitting radiopharmaceutical, Ga-68, which proved easy to perform. 
Because of the prior experience with Octreotide, Ga-68 dota-Octreotide was the first agent used 
(8, 9). This is the same somatostatin analogue in In-111 Octreotide. Ga-68 has a half-life of 68 
minutes (F-18 FDG, the more common radiopharmaceutical used for many carcinomas, has a 
half-life of 110 minutes). Following injection, imaging can be performed 60-120 minutes later 
during which time no bowel activity is seen to confound the evaluation of images. Thus, any 
tumor within the gut is easily visualized. The shorter half-life decreases the radiation dose to the 
patient and also allows higher dose of the somatostatin analogue to be incorporated with the 
radiopharmaceutical: ≤ 50 ug. The shorter half-life of the radiopharmaceutical also means that 
imaging is completed within 3 hours or less instead of days as in the case of In-111 Octreotide 
(6).  
 


5 
 
In one of the earliest study consisting of 8 patients with biopsy proven neuroendocrine tumor, all 
lesions, defined by CT and MRI, were detected by Ga-68 DOTATOC (100%) while In-111 
Octreotide missed 30% of the lesions. Arterial blood analysis at 4 hours after Ga-68 DOTATOC 
injection showed no detectable radioactivity in the serum confirming the short half-life of Ga-68 
(8). Two other forms of Octreotide namely dota-Octreotate (DOTATATE) and dotan-Octreotide 
(DOTANOC) were also labeled with Ga-68. In addition to European countries, Japan and other 
Asian countries have also started to use Ga-68 Octreotide preparations for imaging (9).  
 
Human dosimetry has shown that the highest absorbed organ doses for the Ga-68 labeled 
somatostatin analogues were seen in the spleen, uroepithelium of the bladder, kidneys, adrenal 
glands and liver (6, 10). Relative radiation dose (effective dose) for Ga-68 is 0.023 mSv/MBq 
dose. For comparative purposes of radiation exposure measurement, the table below illustrates 
the effective doses Ga-68 labeled Octreotide preparations versus In-111 Octreotide and F-18 
FDG (10): 
 
 
Ga68-DOTATATE 
Ga68-DOTATOC 
Ga68-DOTANOC 
In-111 Octreotide 
F18-FDG 
MBq injected activity 
185 
185 
185 
74 (222)* 
370 
Equivalent mCi 
injected activity 
 
5 
 
5 
 
5 
 
2 (6)* 
 
10 
Effective dose 
(mSv) 
4.8 
4.8 
4.8 
5.9 (17.7)* 
7.0 
  
 
 
The low dose CT for PET/CT imaging incurs about 7-10 mSv. For a dose of 100-185 MBq Ga-68 
PET/ CT, the total radiation dose comes to 10-14.3 mSv which is equivalent to 3.3 to 4.8 years of 
natural background radiation. Clearly, Ga-68 labeled somatostatin analogues are associated with 
much lower radiation dose compared with currently available In-111 Octreotide, which is injected 
as a 6 mCi dose in USA.  
 
As far as the ability to detect the primary NET is concerned, many studies as shown Section 2.2 
have shown the superiority of Ga-68 labeled somatostatin analogues. For example, in a 
prospective clinical investigation with 19 consecutive patients, the following results were obtained 
(11): 
 
 
Sensitivity 
Specificity 
Accuracy 
Ga-68 DOTATATE 
0.96 
0.97 
0.97 
Tc-99m Octreotide 
0.60 
0.99 
0.86 
MRI 
0.73 
1.0 
0.91 
 
  
In another study that reviewed a total of 123 patients with unknown primary NET in their 
institution; 15 of 52 (45.5%) patients evaluated with Ga-68 DOTATOC had their primary tumors 
localized. Only 4 of the 71 (8%) patients who underwent In-111 Octreotide scan had their primary 
tumor visualized. Seventeen patients underwent both imaging modalities: both In-111 Octreotide 
and Ga-68 DOTATOC identified the primary tumor in two patients; Ga-68 detected an additional 
lesion in one of these patients. In-111 Octreotide failed to detect the primary tumor in 15 patients, 
whereas Ga-68 DOTATOC localized the tumor in 7 of these patients (12). Other experiences with 
*Standard dose of In-111 Octreotide injected in USA is 6 mCi (222 MBq), equivalent MBq and ED for this amount in parenthesis.   


6 
 
Ga-68 labeled somatostatin analogues can be found in Section 2.2.  
 
While the number of patients included in many of the clinical investigations using Ga-68 products 
described in this protocol is small compared to the usual number of patients in many oncologic 
investigations, it should be noted that NETs are rare and multicentre trials have not been 
performed.  
 
In August 2013, the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI) submitted an 
application to the Federal Drug Administration to designate Ga-68 DOTATOC as orphan drug to 
allow its availability for clinical use in the USA since it has already been shown by many 
investigators from various countries to be efficacious and safe for human use. In September 
2013, FDA granted Ga-68 DOTATOC its orphan drug designation and allowed its use in the USA 
as investigational new agent/drug without the traditional preclinical and Phase I clinical studies.  
With this new orphan drug designation, Ga68-DOTATOC is directed down a unique pathway 
within the FDA on its road to approval.  
 
SSTR imaging is important for diagnosing, staging and for follow up of patients with NETs. It is 
even more important now given the availability of a very effective protein radionuclide 
radiotherapy (PRRT) using the same somatostatin analogue, Octreotide, labeled with another 
radiopharmaceutical that is useful for therapy such as Lu-177 or Y90 has been has been very 
helpful in metastatic disease and in resistant NET with reported at least 30% decrease in tumor 
size (13). For PRRT to be effective, confirmation of SSRT receptor status is required. Indeed, 
somatostatin analogues have been used for diagnosis and for therapy with encouraging results 
(9, 13-16). There are currently very few institutions in USA that have a specialized NET program. 
One such institution is located in Vanderbilt University Hospital in Tennessee and another 
hospital in Iowa. There is no established program in the East Coast at the moment. The 
availability of PRRT for patients with inoperable, advanced or recalcitrant NET will provide a 
much needed option for these patients (14-16). 
 
 
2.1 Characteristics of 68Ga-DOTATOC 
 
68Ga-DOTATOC has 3 main components, namely the somatostatin analogue (DOTA0-Phe1-Tyr3) 
octreotide (commonly referred as DOTATOC), the chemical linker DOTA (tetraxetan) and the 
positron emitter 68Gallium. These entire three components have been previously used in human 
subjects and in medical research. Approximately 50 micrograms of DOTATOC will be used for 
labeling with 68Ga to manufacture PET/CT agent.  
DOTA is a well-established bifunctional chelating agent first used in the 1970s (7,8,17), with 
chemical formula 1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-1,4,7,10-tetraacetic acid, a 12 member 
tetraaza macrocycle, essentially a cyclen skeleton that has been modified with acetate side arms 
to form a polyamino carboxylic acid. At the time of its discovery DOTA was demonstrated to have 
the largest known formation constant for the complexation Ca2+ and Gd3+ ions. A modified version 
of DOTA C-functionalized to act as a bifunctional chelate agent was first reported in 1988. DOTA 
is the most frequently used moiety for elemental labelling, typically metal isotopes to proteins 
(antibodies and peptides). There are several derivatives of DOTA also being used in medicine, 
such as DOTATOC ((DOTA (0)-Phe (1)-Tyr (3)) octreotide) or edotreotide) and DOTATATE 
((DOTA (0), Phe1, Tyr3)-octreotate), however, all of these compounds have so far no marketing 
authorisation.  
Gallium is a metallic element, which in nitrate form is used intravenously to treat hypercalcaemia 
due to bone tumors. Isotopes of Gallium (67Ga, 68Ga) are used as radiopharmaceuticals in 


7 
 
different forms and salts. The body handles Gallium similarly to Iron, and thus it is bound (and 
concentrates) in areas of inflammation, such as infection, and also areas of rapid cell division. 
68Gallium, a positron emitter with a short half-life (68min) is used as a diagnostic 
radiopharmaceutical for PET-CT when linked to pharmaceutical preparations such as 68Ga-
DOTATATE or DOTATOC all of which are somatostatin analogues being researched for the 
diagnosis of neuroendocrine tumours. Ga-68 linked with DOTA has allowed simpler radiolabeling 
procedure for different peptides. 
 
2.2 Previous Human Exposure 
 
There is substantial previous clinical experience with Octreotate from therapeutic trials and 
diagnostic use of 68Ga-DOTATATE and   68Ga-DOTATOC. Following is a list of few peer-
reviewed publications related to use of somatostatin analogues for diagnostic as well as 
therapeutic purposes.  
2.3 Clinical studies with use of somatostatin analogues as 
68Ga-DOTATOC, 
68Ga-
DOTATATE and 177Lu-DOTATOC 
1. Henze M, Schuhmacher J, Hipp P. et al: PET imaging of somatostatin receptors using 
[68Ga]DOTA-D-Phe-Tyr-Octreotide: first results in patients meneingiomas. J Nucl Med 
2001;42:1053-1056.     
This earlier study included 3 patients with 8 meningiomas who underwent brain 
imaging with Ga-68 DOTATOC. All menigiomas, including small sized lesions, were 
detected with very high target to background ratio. No adverse reaction was noted in 
the patients. Investigators concluded that Ga-68 DOTATOC can be used in small 
lesions. 
 
2. Kowalski J, Henze M, Schuhmacher J, et al: Evaluation of positron tomography 
imaging 
using 
[68Ga]-DOTA-D 
Phe(1)-Tyr(3)-Octreotide 
in 
comparison 
to 
[111In]DTPAOC SPECT. First results in patients with neuroendocrine tumors. Molec 
Imaging and Biology. 2003; 5:42-48. 
4 patients were evaluated using In-111 Octreotide and Ga-68 Octreotide. The 
investigators found Ga-68 B DOTATOC to be superior to In-111 Octreotide especially 
in small tumors or tumors bearing only a low density of SSTRs.  No adverse side 
effects reported following injection of Ga-68 DOTATOC. 
 
3. Gabriel M, Decristoforo C, Kendler D, Dobrozemsky G, Heute D, Uprimny C, Kovacs P, 
Guggenberg E, Bale R, and Virgolini IJ.  
68Ga-DOTA-Tyr3-Octreotide PET in 
Neuroendocrine Tumors: Comparison with Somatostatin Receptor Scintigraphy and 
CT. J Nucl Med 48, 508-518 (2007). 
Study Design: 84 patients (48 men, 36 women; age range, 28–79 y; mean age ± SD, 
58.2 ± 12.2 y) were prospectively studied. For analysis, patients were divided into 3 
groups: detection of unknown primary tumor in the presence of clinical or biochemical 
suspicion of neuroendocrine malignancy (n =13 patients), initial tumor staging (n = 36 
patients), and follow-up after therapy (n = 35 patients). Each patient received 100–150 
MBq 68Ga-DOTA-TOC. The gold standard for defining true-positive (TP), true-negative 


8 
 
(TN), false-positive (FP), and false-negative (FN) results was based on all available 
histologic, imaging, and follow-up findings. 
Results: PET was TP in 69 patients, TN in 12 patients, FP in 1 patient, and FN in 2 
patients, indicating a sensitivity of 97%, a specificity of 92%, and an accuracy of 96%. 
The FP finding was caused by enhanced tracer accumulation in the pancreatic head, 
and the FN results were obtained in patients with a tumor of the gastrointestinal tract 
displaying liver metastases. 68Ga-DOTA-TOC showed higher diagnostic efficacy 
compared with SPECT (TP in 37 patients, TN in 12 patients, FP in 1 patient, and FN in 
34 patients) and diagnostic CT (TP in 41 patients, TN in 12 patients, FP in 5 patients, 
and FN in 26 patients). This difference was of statistical significance (P< 0.001). 
However, the combined use of PET and CT showed the highest overall accuracy.  
Discrepancies with Ga-68 DOTATOC PET and In-111 Octreotide SPECT were in 32 
patients (32%) all of whom were TP with PET and FN with SPECT. In this group of 
patients, 10 liver metastases, 22 small nodal metastases in 15 patients and carcinoid 
tumors in 2 patients with peritoneal deposits were missed on SPECT. A total of 32 
bone lesions were only seen on Ga-68 PET images, not visualized on In-111 
Octreotide scan or on bone scan.  
Discrepancies with Ga-68 PET and diagnostic CT were found in 34 patients (40.5%): 
2 TP, 1 TN, 5 FP, 26 FN findings with CT. FP findings on CT were caused small 
nodular lung lesions in 2 patients, enlarged nodes in another 2 patients and one 
patient with leiomyoma in a jejunal wall lesion. Ga-68 PET provided information on 9 
patients with unsuspected bone metastases on CT. In 5 patients, the primary or 
residual NET was missed on CT and detected on Ga-68 PET.  
Intravenous injection of Ga-68 DOTATOC was well tolerated by all 84 patients with 
side effects observed. The optimal time of imaging in this study was determined to be 
100 minutes after injection.  
Conclusion: 
68Ga-DOTA-TOC PET shows a significantly higher detection rate 
compared with conventional somatostatin receptor scintigraphy (Octreoscan) and 
diagnostic CT with clinical impact in a considerable number of patients. 
 
4. Buchmann I, Henze M, Engelbrecht S, Eisenhut M, Runz A, Schäfer M, Schilling T, 
Haufe S, Herrmann T, Haberkorn U. Comparison of 68Ga-DOTATOC PET and 111In-
DTPAOC (Octreoscan) SPECT in patients with neuroendocrine tumours. Eur J Nucl 
Med Mol Imaging 34, 1617-1626 (2007). 
Study Design: 27 NET patients were prospectively examined. 68Ga-DOTATOC PET 
and 111In-DTPAOCTREOTIDE SPECT were performed using standard techniques. 
Treatment was not applied in between. Mean and maximum standardized uptake 
values (SUVs) were calculated for PET findings. Tumor/non-tumor ratios were 
calculated for SPECT findings. Findings were compared by a region-by-region 
analysis and verified with histopathology, CT and MRI within 21 days. 
Results: SUVs of positive lesions on 68Ga-DOTATOC PET ranged from 0.7 to 29.3 
(mean SUV) and from 0.9 to 34.4 (maximum SUV). Tumor/non-tumor ratios on 111In-
DTPAOC SPECT ranged from 1.8 to 7.3. In imaging lung and skeletal manifestations, 
68Ga-DOTATOC PET was more efficient than 111In-DTPAOC SPECT. All discrepant 
lung findings and 77.8% of discrepant osseous findings were verified as true positive 
PET interpretations. In regional comparison of liver and brain, 68Ga-DOTATOC PET 


9 
 
and 111In-DTPAOC SPECT were identical. In lymph nodes, the pancreas and the 
gastro-intestinal system, different values of the two techniques were not indicated in 
regional analyses. In a single patient, surgical interventions were changed on the 
basis of 68Ga-DOTATOC PET findings.  
Conclusion: 68Ga-DOTATOC PET is superior to 111In-DTPAOC SPECT in the 
detection of NET manifestations in the lung and skeleton and similar for the detection 
of NET manifestations in the liver and brain. 68Ga-DOTATOC PET is advantageous in 
guiding the clinical management. 
 
5. Srirajaskanthan R, Kayani I, Quigley AM, Soh J, Caplin ME, and Bomanji J. The Role of 
68Ga-DOTATATE PET in Patients with Neuroendocrine Tumors and Negative or 
Equivocal Findings on 111In-DTPA-Octreotide Scintigraphy. J Nucl Med. 51, 876-882 
(2010). 
Study Design: Fifty-one patients with a histologically confirmed diagnosis of 
neuroendocrine tumors were included. Of the 51 patients, 35 who were negative and 
16 equivocal for uptake on 111In-DTPA-octreotide scintigraphy underwent 68Ga-
DOTATATE PET. Findings were compared using a region-by-region analysis. All 
findings were verified with CT or MRI. After 68Ga-DOTATATE PET, all cases were 
reviewed to determine whether the 68Ga-DOTATATE PET findings resulted in any 
alteration in management, in terms of suitability for peptide receptor therapy, 
somatostatin analogs, and surgery. 
Results: Of the 51 patients, 47 had evidence of disease on cross-sectional imaging or 
biochemically. 68Ga-DOTATATE PET was positive in 41 of these 47 patients (87.2%). 
No false positive lesions were identified. 68Ga-DOTATATE PET detected 168 of the 
226 lesions (74.3%) that were identified with cross-sectional imaging. 
68Ga-
DOTATATE PET identified significantly more lesions than 111In-DTPA-octreotide 
scintigraphy (P< 0.001). There was no correlation between 68Ga-DOTATATE uptake 
and histologic grade of neuroendocrine tumors. 68Ga-DOTATATE imaging changed 
management in 36 patients (70.6%), who were subsequently deemed suitable for 
peptide receptor– targeted therapy.  
Conclusion: In patients with negative or equivocal 111In-DTPA-octreotide findings, 
68Ga-DOTATATE PET identifies additional lesions and may alter management in most 
cases. 
 
6. Hofman MS, Kong G, Neels OC, Eu P, Hong E, Hicks RJ. High management impact of 
Ga-68 DOTATATE (GaTate) PET/CT for imaging neuroendocrine and other somatostatin 
expressing tumours. J Med Imaging Radiat Oncol. 56, 40-47 (2012). 
Study Design: Fifty-nine GaTate PET/CT studies were performed over an 18-month 
period (52 proven or suspected gastro-entero-pancreatic or bronchial neuroendocrine 
tumors and seven neural crest/mesenchymal tumors). A retrospective blinded review 
was performed on the number of abnormalities (1, 2-5 or >5) within defined regions 
with comparison to conventional imaging to assess incremental diagnostic information. 
Subsequent management impact (high, moderate or low) was determined by clinical 
review and follow up to assess pre-PET stage, treatment intent and post-PET 
management change. 


10 
 
Results: Eighty-eight percent of GaTate studies were abnormal. Compared with 
conventional and In-111 octreotide imaging, additional information was provided by 
GaTate PET/CT in 68 and 83% of patients, respectively. Management impact was 
high (inter-modality change) in 47%, moderate (intra-modality change) in 10% and low 
in 41% (not assessable in 2%). High management impact included directing patients 
to curative surgery by identifying a primary site and directing patients with multiple 
metastases to systemic therapy.  
Conclusion: GaTate PET/CT imaging provides additional diagnostic information in a 
high proportion of patients with consequent high management impact. GaTate 
PET/CT could replace In-111 Octreotide scintigraphy at centers where it is available 
given its superior accuracy, faster acquisition and lower radiation exposure. Rapid 
implementation could be achieved by allowing institutional funding in the Medicare 
Benefit Schedule. 
7. Poeppel TD, Binse I, Petersenn S, Lahner H, Schott M, Antoch G, Brandau W, Bockisch 
A, Boy C. 68Ga-DOTATOC versus 68Ga-DOTATATE PET/CT in functional imaging of 
neuroendocrine tumors. J Nucl Med. 52, 1864-1870 (2011). 
Study Design: Forty patients with metastatic NETs underwent 68Ga-DOTATOC and 
68Ga-DOTATATE PET/CT as part of the work-up before prospective peptide receptor 
radionuclide therapy. The performance of both imaging methods was analyzed and 
compared for the detection of individual lesions per patient and for 8 defined body 
regions. A region was regarded positive if at least 1 lesion was detected in that region. 
In addition, radiopeptide uptake in terms of the maximal standardized uptake value 
(SUVmax) was compared for concordant lesions and renal parenchyma. 
Results: Seventy-eight regions were found positive with 68Ga-DOTATATE versus 79 
regions with 68Ga-DOTATOC (not significant). Overall, however, significantly fewer 
lesions were detected with 68Ga-DOTATATE than with 68Ga-DOTATOC (254 vs. 262, 
P < 0.05). Mean 68Ga-DOTATATE SUVmax across all lesions was significantly lower 
than 68Ga-DOTATOC (16.0 ± 10.8 vs. 20.4 ± 14.7, P < 0.01). Mean SUVmax for renal 
parenchyma was not significantly different between 68Ga-DOTATATE and 68Ga-
DOTATOC (12.7 ± 3.0 vs. 13.2 ± 3.3).  
Conclusion: 68Ga-DOTATOC and 68Ga-DOTATATE possess a comparable diagnostic 
accuracy for the detection of NET lesions, with 68Ga-DOTATOC having a potential 
advantage. The approximately 10-fold higher affinity for the sst2 of 68Ga-DOTATATE 
does not prove to be clinically relevant. Quite unexpectedly, SUVmax of 68Ga-
DOTATOC scans tended to be higher than their 68Ga-DOTATATE counterparts. 
 
8. Velikyan I, Sundin A, Sorensen J, et al: Quantitative and qualitative intrapatient 
comparison of 68Ga-DOTATOC and 68Ga- DOTATATE: net uptake rate for accurate 
quantification. J Nulc Med 2014;55:204.210. 
Quantitative imaging and dosimetry are crucial for individualized treatment during 
PRRT. In this investigation, 68 Ga-DOTATOC and 68 Ga –DOTATATE were used for 
diagnostic imaging and 177Lu-DOTATATE for therapy. 
Study Design: Ten patients with metastatic neuroendocrinetumors underwent one 45-
min dynamic and 3 whole-body PET/CTexaminations at 1, 2, and 3 h after injection 
with both tracers. The number of detected lesions, SUVs in lesions and normal tissue, 
total functional tumor volume, and SSTR volume (functional tumor volume multiplied 


11 
 
by mean SUV) were investigated for each time point. Net uptake rate (Ki) was 
calculated according to the Patlak method for 3 tumors per patient. 
 
Results: There were no significant differences in lesion count, lesion SUV, Ki, 
functional tumor volume, or SSTR volume between 68Ga-DOTATOC and 68Ga-
DOTATATE at any time point. The detection rate was similar, although with 
differences for single lesions in occasional patients. For healthy organs, marginally 
higher uptake of 68Ga-DOTATATE was observed in kidneys, bone marrow, and liver 
at 1 h. 68Ga-DOTATOC uptake was higher in mediastinal blood pool at the 1-h time 
point (P 5 0.018). The tumor-to liver ratio was marginally higher for 68Ga-DOTATOC 
at the 3-h time point (P 5 0.037). Blood clearance was fast and similar for both tracers. 
SUV did not correlate with Ki linearly and achieved saturation for a Ki of greater than 
0.2 mL/cm3/min, corresponding to an SUV of more than 25.  
 
Conclusion: 68Ga-DOTATOC and 68Ga-DOTATATE are suited equally well for 
staging and patient selection for PRRT with 177Lu-DOTATATE. However, the slight 
difference in the healthy organ distribution and excretion may render 68Ga-
DOTATATE preferable. SUV did not correlate linearly with Ki and thus may not reflect 
the SSTR density accurately at its higher values, whereas Ki might be the outcome 
measure of choice for quantification of SSTR density and assessment of treatment 
outcome. 
 
9. Kayani I, Conry BG, Groves AM, Win T, Dickson J, Caplin M, Bomanji JB. A comparison 
of 68Ga-DOTATATE and 18F-FDG PET/CT in pulmonary neuroendocrine tumors. J Nucl 
Med. 50, 1927-1932 (2009). 
 
Study Design: Twenty SRS were included in the study. Patients' age (n = 20) ranged 
from 25 to 75 years (mean 55.4 ± 12.7 years). There were eight patients with well-
differentiated neuroendocrine tumor (WDNET) grade1, eight patients with WDNET 
grade 2, one patient with poorly differentiated neuroendocrine carcinoma (PDNEC) 
grade 3 and one patient with mixed adenoneuroendocrine tumour (MANEC). All 
patients had two consecutive PET studies with 
68Ga-DOTATATE and 
68Ga-
DOTANOC. All images were evaluated visually and maximum standardized uptake 
values (SUV (max)) were also calculated for quantitative evaluation. 
Results: On visual evaluation both tracers produced equally excellent image quality 
and similar body distribution. The physiological uptake sites of pituitary and salivary 
glands showed higher uptake in 68Ga-DOTATATE images. Liver and spleen uptake 
values were evaluated as equal. Both 68Ga-DOTATATE and 68Ga-DOTANOC were 
negative in 6 (30 %) patients and positive in 14 (70 %) patients. In 68Ga-DOTANOC 
images only 116 of 130 (89 %) lesions could be defined and 14 lesions were missed 
because of lack of any uptake. SUV (max) values of lesions were significantly higher 
on 68Ga-DOTATATE images.  
Conclusion: This study demonstrated that the images obtained by 68Ga-DOTATATE 
and 
68Ga-DOTANOC have comparable diagnostic accuracy. However, 
68Ga-
DOTATATE seems to have a higher lesion uptake and may have a potential 
advantage. 
10. Forrer, F., Uusijarvi, H., Storch, D., Maecke, H.R. & Mueller-Brand, J. Treatment with 
177Lu-DOTATOC of patients with relapse of neuroendocrine tumors after treatment with 
90Y-DOTATOC. J Nucl Med 46, 1310-6 (2005). 


12 
 
Study Design: Twenty seven patients with metastatic NETs who had previously 
received treatment with 90Y-DOTATOC received a single fixed dose of 7.4 GBq (200 
mCi) 177Lu-DOTATOC at a median of 15.4 months after the last cycle of 90Y therapy. 
Restaging was performed after 8-12 weeks. Patients with hematological toxicities after 
90Y therapy (grade 1 or 2 WHO criteria) were included.  Infusion of amino acids 
(Ringers lactated Hartmann solution, Proteinsterile HEPA *% MG5-Sulfat) was given 
30 min prior to and up to 3 h after treatment for kidney protection.  
 
Results:. The mean absorbed doses were 413±159mGy for the whole body, 3.1±1.5 
mGy for the kidneys and 61±5 mGy for the red marrow. After restaging, a partial 
response was found in 2 patients (7%), Minor response in 5 patients (18%), stable 
disease in 12 patients (44%) and progressive disease in 8 patients (29.6%).  
 
Conclusions: 177Lu-DOTATOC treatment is feasible, safe and efficacious. No serious 
adverse events occurred.  
 
11. Haug AR, Auernhammer AJ, Wangler B, Schmidt GP, Uebleis C, Goke B, Cumming P, 
Bartenstein P, Tiling R, and HackerM.  68Ga-DOTATATE PET/CT for the early prediction 
of response to somatostatin receptor- mediated Radionuclide therapy in patients with 
well-Differentiated nueroendocrine tumors. J Nucl Med. 51, 1349-1356 (2010). 
Study Design: 32 patients (22 male and 11 female; mean age ± SD, 57.8 ± 12.1 y) 
were investigated at baseline and again 3 month after initiation of the first cycle of 
PRRT. 68Ga-DOTATATE receptor expression was assessed using 2 measures of 
standardized uptake value (SUV) 
Results: The 23 of 31 patients with decreased SUVT/S after the first PRRT cycle had 
longer progression-free survival than did the 8 of 31 patients with stable or increased 
scores. For the 18 of 33 patients showing a reduction in SUVmax, there was no 
significant difference in progression-free survival. Multivariate regression analysis 
identified.  
Conclusion: Decreased 68Ga-DOTATATE uptake in tumors after the first cycle of 
PRRT predicted time to progression and correlated with an improvement in clinical 
symptoms among patients with well differentiated neuroendocrine tumors. 
 
12. Gabriel M, Oberauer A, Dobrozemsky G, Decristoforo C, Putzer D, Kendler D, Uprimny 
C, Kovacs P, Bale R, Virgolini IJ. 68Ga-DOTA-Tyr3-octreotide PET for assessing 
response to somatostatin-receptor-mediated radionuclide therapy. J Nucl Med. 50, 
1427-1434 (2009). 
Study Design: Forty-six patients (29 men, 17 women; age range, 34-84 y) with 
advanced neuroendocrine tumors were investigated before and after 2-7 cycles of 
radionuclide therapy. Long-acting somatostatin analogs were not applied for at least 6 
wk preceding the follow-up. Data were acquired with a dedicated PET scanner. 
Emission image sets were acquired at 90-100 min after injection. 68Ga-DOTA-TOC 
PET images were visually interpreted by 2 experienced nuclear medicine physicians. 
For comparison, multislice helical CT scans and 1.5-T MRI scans were obtained. 
Attenuation-corrected PET images were used to determine SUVs. Repeated CT 
evaluation and other imaging modalities, for example, (18)F-FDG, were used as the 
reference standard. 


13 
 
Results: According to the reference standard, 68Ga-DOTA-TOC PET and CT showed a 
concordant result in 32 patients (70%). In the remaining 14 patients (30%), 
discrepancies were observed, with a final outcome of progressive disease in 9 
patients and remission in 5 patients. 68Ga-DOTA-TOC PET was correct in 10 patients 
(21.7%), including 5 patients with progressive disease. In these patients, metastatic 
spread was detected with the follow-up whole-body PET but was missed when 
concomitant CT was used. On the other hand, CT confirmed small pulmonary 
metastases not detected on 68Ga-DOTA-TOC in 1 patient and progressive liver 
disease not detected on 68Ga-DOTA-TOC in 3 patients. Quantitative SUV analysis of 
individual tumor lesions showed a large range of variability.  
Conclusion: 68Ga-DOTA-TOC PET shows no advantage over conventional anatomic 
imaging for assessing response to therapy when all CT information obtained during 
follow-up is compared. Only the development of new metastases during therapy was 
detected earlier in some cases when whole-body PET was used. SUV analysis of 
individual lesions is of no additional value in predicting individual responses to 
therapy. 
 
2.4 Diagnostic Agent 
 
Ga-68 DOTATOC has been officially added to MMC’s formulary lists having been cleared by both 
the Radiology and MMC’s Pharmacy and Therapeutics committees, the radiation safety 
committees as well as the NYC Bureau of Radiological Health. Its use as investigational new 
agent is now possible pending clearance from the institution’s regulatory committees for clinical 
trials.  
 
The chemistry, manufacturing and controls (CMC) for the study agent are described in the Quality 
module included with the IND submission (appendix a). The following sections are a brief 
overview of the product.  
 
2.5 Chemical Identity: 
 
The proposed study medication is “Gallium” (68Ga)-DOTATOC, where 68Ga (the tracer) is a 
positron-emitter, Octreotide (the peptide) is a somatostatin analogue, and DOTA (chelator) is a 
chemical chelator used to link 68Ga to Octreotide. 
 
Chemical 
name 
of 
Octreotide: 
L-Cysteinamide,N-[[4,7,10-tris(carboxymethyl)-1,4,7,10-
tetraazacyclododec-1-yl]acetyl]-D-phenylalanyl-L-cysteinyl-L-tyrosyl-D-tryptophyl-L-lysyl-L-
threonyl-N-[(1R,2R)-2-hydroxy-1-(hydroxymethyl)propyl]-, cyclic (2→7)-disulfide 
 
Molecular weight: 1421.6g/mol (DOTATOC). 
 
Route of administration: intravenous route. 
 
Composition: Each batch preparation of 68Ga-DOTATOC contains the following 
 
 
68Gallium 
10-45 mCi in 4 mL 
Drug Substance 
precursor 


14 
 
DOTATOC in 0.25 M  
Acetate buffer( pH=5.5) 
50 ± 5 µg in 1.2 mL 
Drug Substance 
precursor 
Sterile Water for injection 
7.4 ± 1 mL 
Excipient 
Phosphate buffer solution 
0.4 ± 0.1 mL 
Excipient 
 
 
68Gallium is a short-lived (half-life: 68min) positron-emitting isotope generated from decay of the 
parent isotope 68Germanium (half-life: 271 days) in a 68Ga-generator. 68Ga decays by electron 
capture to form Zinc (68Zn), which is a stable nuclide. The main advantage of 68Ga-generator is its 
cyclotron-independent availability, which is important for smaller hospitals by providing less 
expensive and convenient alternative to cyclotron-generated isotopes. Furthermore, the non-
halogenated and non-volatile chemical properties of 68Ga make this isotope ideal as PET tracer. 
Other key radiochemical characteristics of 68Ga are summarised in the table below. 
 
 
68Ga 
physical 
half-life T½ 
Decay 
product 
Maximum 
positron 
energy 
Maximum 
linear range 
Medium 
linear range 
68min 
68Zn 
1.89MeV 
9.1mm 
1.9mm 
 
A new 68Ga/68Ge generator will be fully dedicated to this IND approved clinical investigation.   
 
2.6 Production of 68Ga-DOTATOC:  
 
Due to its short half-life (68min), on-site generation of 68Ga-labelled radiopharmaceuticals is 
mandatory. Generation is relatively simple, consisting of the 68Ga/68Ge-generator being eluted 
initially with hydrochloric acid. The eluate is submitted to a peptide buffer solution for labeling.  
 
68Ga-DOTATOC is labeled according to Current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) per U.S. 
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidelines. Production will be performed at the cGMP suite 
of 390 Concord Avenue Bronx, New York 10454. After sterile filtration of the reaction mixture, the 
product undergoes radiopharmaceutical quality control. 
 
The quality control of the 68Ga-DOTATOC injection solution will be performed by NCM USA 
Bronx, LLC 390 Concord Ave. Bronx, NY 10454 Phone: 718-362-8028 Fax: (718) 362-8029. 
Appearance, volume, yield, radiochemical purity -HPLC, radioactivity measurements, filter 
integrity, pH, residual solvent testing, radionuclide identity, radionuclide purity and endotoxin. 
These tests will be performed before product release, and test results will be documented on the 
Certificate of Analysis. Additional QC steps, including sterility testing, and Germanium 
breakthrough. These tests will be performed after product release, and the test results will be 
included on the Certificate of Analysis.  
 
The Drug Product Ga-68-DOTATOC Injection Solution contains Ga-68-DOTATOC as Drug 
substance (API) filled in a 25 mL glass vial, closed with a coated (FluoroTec™) butyl rubber 
stopper secured with an aluminum crimp seal. The bottle is shipped from the NCM LLC to the site 
of administration in a box with lead shielding.  
 


15 
 
 
3.0 Inclusion Criteria 
 
3.1 
Signed informed consent. 
3.2 
Patients of either gender, aged 18 years. 
3.3 
Karnofsky status 60.  
3.4 
Life expectancy of at least 12 weeks.  
3.5  
Histologically and/or clinically confirmed and/or suspicious of NET.  
3.6  
A diagnostic CT or MRI of the tumour region or suspected area within the previous 
4-6 months prior to dosing day is available. 
 
  
3.7 
Recent Blood test results up to 4-6 weeks as follows: 
 
3.7.1  WBC: >2*109/L  
3.7.2  Haemoglobin: >8.0g/Dl 
3.7.3  Platelets: >50x109/L  
3.87.4  
ALT, AST, AP: 5 times ULN 
3.7.5 Bilirubin: 3 times ULN 
 
3.8  
Serum creatinine: within normal range or <120μmol/L for patients aged 60 years or 
older. 
3.9 
Negative pregnancy test in women capable of child-bearing. 
 
4.0   Exclusion Criteria 
 
4.1 
Known hypersensitivity to DOTA, to 68Gallium, to DOTATOC or to any of the 
excipients of 68Ga-DOTATOC.   
4.2 
Therapeutic use of any somatostatin analogue, including Sandostatin® LAR 
(within 21 days) and Sandostatin® (within 2 days) prior to study imaging. It can be 
stopped for shorter period, depending on the PIs discretion. 
4.3 
Pregnant or breast-feeding women. 
4.4 
Current somatic or psychiatric disease/condition that may interfere with the 
objectives and assessments of the study. 
 
 
5.0 Study design 
 
This is a prospective, Phase 2, single center study in a total of 40 subjects with Neuroendocrine 
Tumors (NETs). Study participants will receive 68Ga-DOTATOC and undergo a PET/CT imaging 
study, to investigate its suitability as a PET imaging agent for NETs. The radiation (imaging) dose 
will be 111–185 MBq (3 - 5 mCi) ± 25%. All doses after labeling will be presented in buffered 
solution for intravenous injection. Imaging will start 90 ±30 minutes after injection. 
 
About 40 patients with histologically and/or clinically confirmed and/or suspected NET are 
anticipated to be enrolled during 3 years from initiating the study.  
 
Patients will be recruited at Montefiore Medical Park where there is a medical group specialised 
in the diagnosis and treatment of NETs. Each patient will undergo a screening visit within 14 days 
prior to receiving study medication.  
 


16 
 
The primary goal of the analysis is to estimate the diagnostic accuracy of 68Ga-DOTATOC PET-
CT for detecting NET compared to conventional imaging techniques. 
 
The patients will be followed up by a telephone call 24 hour after administration of test drug 
(68Ga-DOTATOC) to assess if patients have experienced any adverse event. This information will 
be captured in the CRF for further assessment. 
 
5.1 Image Acquisition: 
 
5.1.1 PET imaging 
 68Ga-DOTATOC PET images will be acquired 90 ±30 minutes after injection of 111–185 MBq (3-
5 mCi) ±25% of 68Ga-DOTATOC. Any adverse effects will be documented after the injection of 
68Ga-DOTATOC. Imaging will be performed with patients in supine position using the Philips 
Gemini TF time-of-flight (TOF) PET/CT scanner (Philips Medical Systems, Cleveland, Ohio) with 
a spatial resolution of 5 mm in the center of the field of view, with emission scan acquired for 1 
min 40 sec. per frame in 3D acquisition mode.  Proprietary vendor-provided software will be used 
for image reconstruction with LISTMODE OS-EM reconstruction algorithm (33 subsets, 3 
iterations).  The low-dose CT ( LDCT) scan will be used for non-uniform attenuation correction. 
Both scatter and random corrections will be performed by embedded program provided by the 
vendor.  
5.1.2 CT Scan 
 
CT scan will be performed using the CT exposure factors for all examinations of 140 kVp and 80-
100 mA in 0.8 s. With patient position maintained, a whole-body PET emission scan will be 
performed covering an area identical to that covered by CT; scans will be performed in 3-
dimensional mode. All PET acquisitions will be carried out in 3- dimensional mode (5 min per bed 
position), in an approximately 40-min scanning time. PET images will be reconstructed using CT 
for attenuation correction and using ordered-subsets expectation maximization with 2 iterations 
and 24 subsets.  
 
5.1.3 PET/CT Images 
 
The images from 68Ga-DOTATOC PET/CT will be reported by experienced nuclear medicine 
physicians. Areas of abnormal focal uptake will be documented. These areas of abnormal uptake 
will be compared with any prior cross-sectional imaging (CT or MRI) within 12 weeks to confirm 
the presence of lesions. 
 
 
5.2. Interpretation of Data 
 
The number of lesions that could be identified clearly as single focus will be determined for each 
patient. To enable a methodic and consistent approach to lesion identification, we will create 3 
categories of lesion sites: organs (Head and Neck, lungs, breast, liver, pancreas, gastrointestinal 
tract, kidney, spleen, and pelvis/ovaries), nodal regions (Axillary, thoracic, mesenteric, abdominal, 
and pelvic [excluding mesenteric], and inguinal regions), and musculoskeletal system (vertebrae, 
bony thorax, bony pelvis, and limb bones). Because of confluence and inability to clearly 
delineate single liver lesions in some cases, liver metastases will be classified as 1 organ 
metastasis, independent of the number of liver metastases present. Lymph nodes smaller than 1 
cm on CT or MRI and showing marked avidity for 68Ga-DOTATOC will be labeled as positive for 


17 
 
disease. In cases where images from 111In-Octreotide are available for comparison, the same 
imaging parameters will be applied. The presence of lesions will be confirmed by cross-sectional 
imaging of all patients with CT or MRI. As there may be lesion/s that can show abnormal focal 
activity on Ga-68 PET images but not on morphologic images, such lesion/s will be considered 
positive NET.  
 
Each scan (68Ga-DOTATOC) will be read by two independent, board certified nuclear medicine 
physicians blinded to the results of other scan. A third independent nuclear medicine physician 
will then review both the results (independent reviews) and clinical information to reach to a 
consensus. 
 
5.3 Population characteristics  
 
We will collect demographic information and medical history as provided by patients. 
 
 
5.4 Statistical Analysis 
 
The primary goal of the analysis is to estimate the diagnostic accuracy of 68Ga-DOTATOC PET-
CT for detecting NET compared to conventional imaging techniques.  Analyses will be performed 
with both patient and lesion as the unit of observation. Since all patients are expected to have at 
least one NET lesion, only sensitivity can be estimated in the analysis by patient, whereas both 
sensitivity and specificity will be estimated in the lesion based analysis. We will compute the 
relevant proportions and corresponding 95% confidence intervals, with adjustment for correlated 
data from the same patient. Results from pathology reports available from previous biopsy or 
surgical specimens will be considered the gold standard. In the absence of pathology reports, 
initial and follow up diagnostic CT or MRI scan following nonsurgical therapy including 
chemotherapy will be considered the gold standard.  
 
Kappa statistics will be computed and McNemar’s test will be performed to compare the 
sensitivity and specificity between 68Ga-DOTATOC PET-CT with SPECT and diagnostic CT for 
detecting NET. All analyses will be performed in SAS and p-values < 0.05 will be considered 
statistically significant.  
 
5.4 Justification of Sample Size 
 
We project that it will be feasible to recruit a total of 40 patients with histologically and/or clinically 
confirmed and/or suspected NET into the study. Each subject is expected to have on average 2 
lesions and among the 80 total lesions; we project that 60% will be positive for NET. To evaluate 
the adequacy of the sample size (i.e., number of lesions), we computed the precision, as 
measured by the width of the 95% CI, with which the sensitivity and specificity of 68Ga-
DOTATOC PET-CT scan can be estimated. The width of the 95% CI will be no greater than +/- 
14% for sensitivity and +/- 17% for specificity in the lesion-based analysis. For the patient-based 
analysis, the precision with which sensitivity can be estimated is +/- 15%.   
 
6.0 Criteria for Study Termination 
 
The IND/study will be stopped if any adverse reaction >grade 1 is observed during the trial. A full 
assessment of adverse reaction will be conducted to determine if it is drug related or not drug 
related. If the adverse reaction is not related to the drug, the study will be resumed and further 


18 
 
patients will be recruited. If the adverse reaction is found to be drug related, it will be reported to 
the IRB and FDA according to respective schedule.  
 
The toxicity/adverse event will be evaluated according to Common Terminology Criteria for 
Adverse Events (CTCAE) Version 4.0, published by NIH. The scale of toxicity is 1 to 5, with 1 
being mild adverse event and 5 being death. The details of the scale can be found at 
http://evs.nci.nih.gov/ftp1/CTCAE/CTCAE_4.03_2010-06-14_QuickReference_5x7.pdf , which is 
specified in the CRF.    
 
7.0 Monitoring and Quality Control / Assurance  
 
This study will be monitored at all stages by the clinical research personnel designated by the 
physician. Monitoring will include personal visits and telephone communication to ensure that the 
investigation is conducted according to the Protocol and complies with GCP guidelines and 
applicable regulatory requirements. On-site review of CRFs will include a review of forms for 
completeness and clarity, and consistency with source documents available for each patient. 
Any data recorded directly in the CRF, for which no other written or electronic record will be 
maintained in the patient’s medical record, will be considered source data and should be signed 
by the Investigator (e.g. results of physical examinations, vital signs testing, or the investigational 
product administration procedure). During monitoring visits the data recorded in the CRFs, source 
documents, and other study-related records will be compared against each other in order to 
ensure accurate data that reflect the actual experience of the patient in the study, i.e. source data 
verification. The Investigator must ensure that the clinical notes will be available for direct 
verification of source data.  
To this end, the Investigator agrees to allow regular visits (frequency depending on recruitment, 
but estimated as four-weekly) by the study monitors and to ensure they have a suitable area in 
which to work (e.g. a desk) and adequate access to study personnel and documents. 
Medical monitors and clinical research associates (CRAs) or assistants may request to witness 
patient evaluations occurring as part of this Protocol. The Investigator and appropriate personnel 
will be periodically requested to attend meetings/workshops to ensure acceptable Protocol 
execution, if deemed necessary. 
The study may be audited or inspected by the Regulatory or Health Authority or IEC/IRB. If such 
an audit or inspection occurs, the Investigator must agree to allow access to the study site, 
required patient records and study documents. By signing this Protocol, the Investigator grants 
permission to personnel mentioned in this protocol and appropriate Regulatory Authorities for on-
site monitoring of all appropriate study documentation, as well as on-site review of the procedures 
employed in the CRF generation, where clinically appropriate. The Investigator will be informed 
about the outcome of the audit. 
The following activities will be undertaken to ensure the quality of trial-related activities: 
 
 
adherence to the trial site standard operating procedures to maintain accurate and 
consistent practices and procedures 
 
conduct of a site initiation visit to ensure the Investigator and all personnel involved in the 
trial understand the Protocol, including the study procedures and their responsibilities 
 
completion of a standard CRF in accordance with GCP requirements to ensure accurate 
and reliable data 


19 
 
 
Periodic monitoring to ensure the trial data are accurate, complete and verifiable from 
source documents, and that the Protocol is being followed. 
8.0     Patient Consent and Peer Review 
 
Informed consent will be obtained for each patient prior to being placed on this study.  Approval 
by the institutional review board is necessary before beginning this protocol. Please find appendix 
(b) for a copy of patient consent. 
 
9.0   Data Safety and Monitoring Boards 
 
This trial will be monitored by the Albert Einstein Cancer Center Data Safety Monitoring 
Committee (AECC DSMC). A copy of the monitoring plan is maintained at the CPDMU.  The 
DSMC as part of its function performs quarterly reviews of Clinical Trials Compliance Audits, 
monthly reviews Adverse Events Reports, and monthly reviews of internally monitored Phase 
I/Phase II trials for accrual and response. Other monitoring activities are established as 
necessary in a protocol specific manner.   
 
The details of the monitoring are outlined in the AECC Data and Safety Monitoring Plan policy 
document. 
 
9.1 Trial Monitoring 
 
This trial will be monitored by the Albert Einstein Cancer Center Data Safety Monitoring 
Committee (AECC DSMC). A copy of the monitoring plan is maintained at the CPDMU.  The 
DSMC as part of its function performs quarterly reviews of Clinical Trials Compliance Audits, 
monthly reviews Adverse Events Reports, and monthly reviews of internally monitored Phase 
I/Phase II trials for accrual and response. Other monitoring activities are established as 
necessary in a protocol specific manner.   
 
This trial will be part of the monthly Quality Assurance Audits.  Each patient will be evaluated 
within 8 weeks of registration.  This permits evaluation of consent, eligibility, and treatment/dose 
modification/Adverse Event (AE) reporting, and data quality for the first cycle (or month) of 
treatment. 
 
This trial may also be eligible for quarterly Quality Enhancement Audit. Each audit consists of a 
review of regulatory documents, pharmacy drug accountability (if applicable) and patient case 
review, confirming eligibility, protocol compliance and source documentation  
 
The results of the audit will be presented at the following month’s DSMC meeting. The DSMC has 
the authority to close trial to patient accrual should the risk to patients be excessive or results 
require a corrective plan from the Principal Investigator.  All study suspensions and closures will 
be forwarded to the IRB and study sponsor.  All audit reports are forwarded to the DSMC and 
presented to the DSMC by the Audit Committee Coordinator. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 


20 
 
 
 
 
 
10.0 
Bibliography 
   
1. Lawrence B, Gustafsson BI, Chan A, et al. The epidemiology of gastroenterohepatic 
neuroendocrine tumors. Endocrinol Metabb Clin N Am 2011 ;20 :1-18.  
2. Hande KR: Neuroendocrine tumors and the carcinoid syndrome. In: Goldman L, Schafer 
AI (eds). Goldman-Cecil Medicine, 25th edition, Philadelphia, PA, Elsevier Saunders, 
2016; 1556-1560.  
3. Frilling A, Akerstrom G, Falconi M , et al : Neuroendocrine tumor disease: an evolving 
landscape. Endocrine-Related Cancer 2012; 19 :R163-R185.  
4. Teunissen JJM, Kwekkeboom DJ, Valkema R : Nuclear medicine techniques for the 
imaging and treatment of neuroendocrine tumours. Endocrine-Related Cancer 2011; 
18:S27-S51.  
5. Rust E, Hubele F, Marzano E, et al : Nuclear Medicine imaging of gastro-entero-
pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors, The key role of cellular differentiation and tumor 
grade : from theory to clinical picture. Cancer Imaging 2012;12:173-184. 
6. Hofman MS, Lau WFE, Hicks RJ. Somatostatin receptor imaging with GaDOTATE 
PET/CT : clinical utility, normal patterns, pearls, and pitfalls in interpretation. 
RadioGraphics 2015;35: 500-516. 
7. Velikyan I : Prospective of 68Ga-Radiopharmaceutical development. Theranostics 2014; 
4:47-80. 
8. Hofmann M, Maecke H, Borner R, et al. Biokinetics and imaging with the somatostatin 
receptor PET radioligand (68)Ga-DOTATOC: preliminary data. Eur J Nucl Med Mol 
Imaging. 2001; 28: 1751-7.  
9. Wang L, Tang K, Zhang Q, et al: Somatostatin receptor-based molecular imaging and 
therapy for neuroendocrine tumors. Biomed Res International 2013; Article ID 102891:11 
pages. 
10. Walker RC, Smith GT, Liu E, et al: Measured human dosimetry of 68Ga-DOTATATE, J 
Nucl Med: 2013: 54:855-860.  
11. De Camargo Etchebehere ECS, de Oliveira Santos A, Gumz B. et al : 68Ga-DOTATATE 
99mTc-HYNIC-Octreotide SPECT/CT, and whole-body MR imaging in detection of 
neuroendocrine tumors : a Proespective trial. J Nucle Med 2014 ;55 :1598-1604. 
12. Schreiter NF, Bartels AM, Froeling V, et al: Searching for primaries in patients with 
neuroendocrine tumors (NET) of unknown primary and clinically suspected NET : 
Evaluation of Ga-68 DOTATOC PET/CT and In-111 DTPA octreotide SPECT/CT. Radiol 
Oncol 2014; 48:339-347. 
13. Van der Zwan WA, Bodie L, Mueller-Brand J, et al: Radionuclide therapy in 
neuroendocrine tumors. Euro J Endocrinol 2015;172:R1-R8.  
14. Baum RP and Kulkarni HR : Theranostics : From molecular imaging using Ga-68 labeled 
tracers and PET/CT to personalized radionculide therapy- the Bad Berka experience. 
Theranostics 2012 ;2 :437-447. 
15. Bodei L, Kidd M, Baum R, et al : PRRT : Defining the paradigm shift to achieve 
standardization and individualization. J Nucl Med 2014;55:1753-1756. 
16. Ilan E, Sandstrom M, Wassberg C, et al : Dose response of pancreatic neuroendocrine 
tumors treates with pepetide receptor radionuclide therapy using 177 Lu-DOTATATE. J 
Nucl Med 2015 :56 :177-182. 


21 
 
17. Stetter H & Frank W: Complex Formation with Tetraazacycloalkane-N,N′,N″,N‴-
tetraacetic Acids as a Function of Ring Size. Angewandte Chemie International Edition in 
English. 1976;15:686-689. 
 
 
 
11.0 Signature Page  
 
 
Principle Investigator: 
 
Charito Love  MD