The National Oncologic PET Registry

Trial Information

The National Oncologic PET Registry

The National Oncologic PET Registry (NOPR) was developed in response to the Centers for
Medicare and Medicaid Services proposal to expand coverage for positron emission tomography
with F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG-PET) to include cancers and indications not presently
eligible for Medicare reimbursement. Medicare reimbursement for these cancers can be
obtained if the patient's referring physician and the provider submit data to a clinical
registry to assess the impact of PET on cancer patient management. The NOPR has implemented
this registry for CMS. The NOPR is sponsored by the World Molecular Imaging Society
(formerly the Academy of Molecular Imaging), and managed by the American College of
Radiology through the American College of Radiology Imaging Network.

The goal of the National Oncologic PET Registry is to assess the effect of positron emission
tomography with F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG-PET) on referring physicians' plans of intended
patient management for those cancers and indications not currently eligible for
reimbursement from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Data are collected
from the referring physician before and after the PET study. If complete and timely data are
reported to the NOPR within 30 days of the PET scan, the PET facility and interpreting
physician (nuclear physician/radiologist) are eligible for reimbursement by CMS.

On February 26, 2010, CMS announced its decision to cover the use NaF-18 PET to identify
bone metastasis. Under this new policy, the use of NaF-18 PET will be covered only under an
approved (CED) program. The NOPR obtained CMS approval to develop a registry for NaF-18 as
an amendment to the existing NOPR. The NaF-18 PET registry component of NOPR was activated
for accrual on February 7, 2011.

As with the registry for FDG-PET, the goal of the NaF-18 PET registry component is to assess
the impact of this imaging examination on referring physicians' plans of intended management
of patients with known or suspected osseous metastatic disease. Data are collected from the
referring physician before and after the PET study, as well as from the interpreting
physician. If complete and timely data are reported to the NOPR within 30 days of the PET
scan, the PET facility and interpreting physician (nuclear physician/radiologist) are
eligible for reimbursement by CMS.