DOTA-TATE, DOTATATE or DOTA-octreotate is a substance which, when bound to various radionuclides, has been tested for the treatment and diagnosis of certain types of cancer, mainly neuroendocrine tumours.

Chemistry and mechanism of action

DOTA-TATE is an amide of the acid DOTA (top left in the image), which acts as a chelator for a radionuclide, and (Tyr³)-octreotate, a derivative of octreotide. The latter binds to somatostatin receptors, which are found on the cell surfaces of a number of neuroendocrine tumours, and thus directs the radioactivity into the tumour.

Usage examples

Gallium (⁶⁸Ga) DOTA-TATE (GaTate) is used for tumour diagnosis in positron emission tomography (PET).^[1] DOTA-TATE PET/CT has a much higher sensitivity compared to In-111 octreotide imaging.

Lutetium (¹⁷⁷Lu) DOTA-TATE^[2] has been tested for the treatment of tumors such as carcinoid and endocrine pancreatic tumor. It is presently available in North America in Houston on clinical trial,^[3] which may soon be expanding to additional cancer centers as a multicenter study. Select medical centers in Europe offer this treatment, for instance Uppsala Centre of Excellence in Neuroendocrine Tumors and Erasmus University. In Australia, treatment is available at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and at the Department of Nuclear Medicine at Fremantle Hospital in Western Australia.^[4] At Fremantle Hospital, patients are treated with an intravenous infusion of 7.5 GBq of lutetium-177 octreotate. After about four to six hours, the exposure rate of the patient has fallen to less than 25 microsieverts per hour at one metre and the patients can be discharged from hospital. A course of therapy consists of four infusions at three monthly intervals.^[5]

See also

• DOTATOC or edotreotide, a similar compound

References