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Tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) staging system is the most important basis for making therapeutic decisions and predicting prognosis of lung cancer patients. The metabolic parameters including standardized uptake value (SUV), metabolic tumor volume (MTV) and total lesion glycolysis (TLG) measured by 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography (18F-FDG PET/CT) associate with tumor aggressiveness and can provide additional prognostic information. A new staging methodology combines the conventional cTNM with the metabolic tumor burden quantified from the PET images is a better predictor of overall survival with superior stratifying power may help oncologists to make better treatment plans. 18FFDG PET/CT image texture analysis, as an emerging research tool, is used to quantify the spatial heterogeneity of radioactive uptake in tumors, thereby to explore the biological characteristics of the tumor. This article reviews developments in evaluating the 18F-FDG PET/CT metabolic parameters and its role as a prognostic factor for non-small cell lung cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]