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Title: Perfusion Estimated With Rapid Dynamic Contrast-Enhanced Magnetic Resonance Imaging Correlates Inversely With Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Expression and Pimonidazole Staining in Head-and-Neck Cancer: A Pilot Study

Journal Article · · International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology and Physics
 [1];  [2];  [1];  [3]; ;  [1];  [4];  [5]
  1. School of Cancer and Enabling Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester (United Kingdom)
  2. Department of Radiology, The Christie, Manchester (United Kingdom)
  3. Department of Clinical Oncology, The Christie, Manchester (United Kingdom)
  4. School of Cancer and Enabling Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Manchester (United Kingdom)
  5. School of Cancer and Enabling Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester (United Kindgom) and Division of Medical Physics, University of Leeds, Leeds (United Kingdom)

Purpose: To analyze, in a pilot study, rapidly acquired dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE)-MRI data with a general two-compartment exchange tracer kinetic model and correlate parameters obtained with measurements of hypoxia and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression in patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck. Methods and Materials: Eight patients were scanned before surgery. The DCE-MRI data were acquired with 1.5-s temporal resolution and analyzed using the two-compartment exchange tracer kinetic model to obtain estimates of parameters including perfusion and permeability surface area. Twelve to 16 h before surgery, patients received an intravenous injection of pimonidazole. Samples taken during surgery were used to determine the level of pimonidazole staining using immunohistochemistry and VEGF expression using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Correlations between the biological and imaging data were examined. Results: Of the seven tumors fully analyzed, those that were poorly perfused tended to have high levels of pimonidazole staining (r = -0.79, p = 0.03) and VEGF expression (r = -0.82, p = 0.02). Tumors with low permeability surface area also tended to have high levels of hypoxia (r = -0.75, p = 0.05). Hypoxic tumors also expressed higher levels of VEGF (r = 0.82, p = 0.02). Conclusions: Estimates of perfusion obtained with rapid DCE-MRI data in patients with head-and-neck cancer correlate inversely with pimonidazole staining and VEGF expression.

OSTI ID:
22054455
Journal Information:
International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology and Physics, Vol. 81, Issue 4; Other Information: Copyright (c) 2011 Elsevier Science B.V., Amsterdam, The Netherlands, All rights reserved.; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0360-3016
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English