Journal
EUROPEAN RADIOLOGY
Volume 31, Issue 4, Pages 2312-2320Publisher
SPRINGER
DOI: 10.1007/s00330-020-07314-6
Keywords
Brain neoplasms; Blood-brain barrier; Glioma; Magnetic resonance imaging
Funding
- Projekt DEAL
Ask authors/readers for more resources
The study suggests that CE BB imaging can significantly improve the delineation of therapy-naive HGGs compared to traditional TFE imaging, indicating a potential supplementary role for CE BB sequences in MRI protocols for brain tumors.
Objectives To investigate the value of contrast-enhanced (CE) turbo spin echo black blood (BB) sequences for imaging of therapy-naive high-grade gliomas (HGGs). Methods Consecutive patients with histopathologically confirmed World Health Organization (WHO) grade III or IV gliomas and no oncological treatment prior to index imaging (March 2019 to January 2020) were retrospectively included. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) at 3 Tesla comprised CE BB and CE turbo field echo (TFE) sequences. The lack/presence of tumor-related contrast enhancement and satellite lesions were evaluated by two readers. Sharper delineation of tumor boundaries (1, bad; 2, intermediate; 3, good delineation) and vaster expansion of HGGs into the adjacent brain parenchyma on CE BB imaging were the endpoints. Furthermore, contrast-to-noise ratios (CNRs) were calculated and compared between sequences. Results Fifty-four patients were included (mean age: 61.2 +/- 15.9 years, 64% male). The vast majority of HGGs (51/54) showed contrast enhancement in both sequences, while two HGGs as well as one of six detected satellite lesions were depicted in CE BB imaging only. Tumor boundaries were significantly sharper (R1: 2.43 +/- 0.71 vs. 2.73 +/- 0.62,p < 0.001; R2: 2.44 +/- 0.74 vs. 2.77 +/- 0.60,p = 0.001), while the spread of HGGs into the adjacent parenchyma was larger when considering CE BB sequences according to both readers (larger spread in CE BB sequences: R1: 23 patients; R2: 20 patients). The CNR for CE BB sequences significantly exceeded that of CE TFE sequences (43.4 +/- 27.1 vs. 32.5 +/- 25.0,p = 0.0028). Conclusions Our findings suggest that BB imaging may considerably improve delineation of therapy-naive HGGs when compared with established TFE imaging. Thus, CE BB sequences might supplement MRI protocols for brain tumors.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available