Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36976821›Full record

ArticlePloS one2023

Interobserver variability in interim PET assessment in Hodgkin lymphoma-reasons and solutions.

Thomas W Georgi, Lars Kurch, Dirk Hasenclever, Victoria S Warbey, Lucy Pike, John Radford, Osama Sabri, Regine Kluge, Sally F Barrington

Open access · goldFull text read
In one paragraph

Article in PloS one, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
1.5field-weighted citation impact, top 18% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 6 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Baseline [BMC cancer · 2025
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.

Thomas W GeorgiDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.ORCID 0000-0002-6066-8753
Lars KurchDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
Dirk HasencleverInstitute for Medical Informatics, Statistics and Epidemiology, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
Victoria S WarbeyKing's College London and Guy's & St Thomas' PET Centre, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, Kings College London, London, United Kingdom.
Lucy PikeKing's College London and Guy's & St Thomas' PET Centre, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, Kings College London, London, United Kingdom.
John RadfordUniversity of Manchester and Christie National Health Service Foundation Trust, Manchester, United Kingdom.
Osama SabriDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
Regine KlugeDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
Sally F BarringtonKing's College London and Guy's & St Thomas' PET Centre, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, Kings College London, London, United Kingdom.
Leipzig University · DEKing's College London · GBNational Health Service · GB

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionInterim PET (iPET) assessment is important for response adaptation in Hodgkin lymphoma (HL). The current standard for iPET assessment is the Deauville score (DS). The aim of our study was to evaluate the causes of interobserver variability in assigning the DS for iPET in HL patients and to make suggestions for improvement.

methodsAll evaluable iPET scans from the RAPID study were re-read by two nuclear physicians, blinded to the results and patient outcomes in the RAPID trial. The iPET scans were assessed visually according to the DS and, thereafter, quantified using the qPET method. All discrepancies of more than one DS level were re-evaluated by both readers to find the reason for the discordant result.

resultsIn 249/441 iPET scans (56%) a concordant visual DS result was achieved. A "minor discrepancy" of one DS level occurred in 144 scans (33%) and a "major discrepancy" of more than one DS level in 48 scans (11%). The main causes for major discrepancies were 1) different interpretation of PET-positive lymph nodes-malignant vs. inflammatory; 2) lesions missed by one reader and 3) different assessment of lesions in activated brown fat tissue. In 51% of the minor discrepancy scans with residual lymphoma uptake, additional quantification resulted in a concordant quantitative DS result.

conclusionDiscordant visual DS assessment occurred in 44% of all iPET scans. The main reason for major discrepancies was the different interpretation of PET positive lymph nodes as malignant or inflammatory. Disagreements in evaluation of the hottest residual lymphoma lesion can be solved by the use of semi-quantitative assessment.

Indexed as

Hodgkin DiseaseLymphomaFluorodeoxyglucose F18HumansObserver VariationPositron-Emission TomographyPositron Emission Tomography Computed TomographyFluorodeoxyglucose F18

Identifiers

PMID36976821
PMCPMC10047538
OpenAlexW4361210524

What OpenQuestion holds

Textfull text, public
LicenceCC BY
measurements read20
identifiers read4
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.