Somatostatin receptor imaging and therapy of pancreatic endocrine tumors.

Somatostatin receptors (SS-Rs) have been found on a variety of neuroendocrine tumors like carcinoids, paragangliomas, as well as on brain and breast tumors. SS-Rs are also present on most pancreatic endocrine tumors, while previous in vitro studies indicate the absence of these receptors on pancreatic duct cancers. Somatostatin receptor scintigraphy with a radionuclide labeled somatostatin analogue, [111In-DTPA0]-octreotide, is a sensitive and specific technique to visualize in vivo the presence of SS-Rs on various tumors. The purpose of this article is to review the somatostatin receptor imaging of pancreatic endocrine tumors and to illustrate the impact of SS-R expression for therapeutic strategies.