Introduction

Advances have been made in positron emission tomography (PET) myocardial perfusion since the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the use of flurpiridaz, which was shown effective in the detection of coronary artery disease (CAD) in two phase III trials, with a high diagnostic precision as compared with Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT) scintigraphy.^– Flurpiridaz is an injectable radiotracer, labeled with fluorine-18 (F-18), developed by GE HealthCare, that will be sold as “Flyrcado” in the United States from 2025 onwards.

With a half-life of 110 minutes, F-18-flurpiridaz requires neither a generator nor a local production of tracers, allowing a more efficient distribution among hospitals and imaging centers, similarly to Fluorodeoxyglucose labeled with Fluorine-18 (F-18 FDG). This feature may favor the adoption of myocardial perfusion PET, benefiting more patients with cardiovascular diseases. Besides, the longer half-life of F-18-flurpiridaz allows the combination of a physical stress test, optimizing the evaluation of ischemia and improving patients’ experience.^,

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