87 research outputs found

    Abbreviated MR Protocols in Prostate MRI

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    Prostate MRI is an integral part of the clinical work-up in biopsy-naĂŻve patients with suspected prostate cancer, and its use has been increasing steadily over the last years. To further its general availability and the number of men benefitting from it and to reduce the costs associated with MR, several approaches have been developed to shorten examination times, e.g., by focusing on sequences that provide the most useful information, employing new technological achievements, or improving the workflow in the MR suite. This review highlights these approaches; discusses their implications, advantages, and disadvantages; and serves as a starting point whenever an abbreviated prostate MRI protocol is being considered for implementation in clinical routine

    Reproducibility and Repeatability of Semiquantitative F-Fluorodihydrotestosterone Uptake Metrics in Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer Metastases: A Prospective Multicenter Study

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    F-fluorodihydrotestosterone (F-FDHT) is a radiolabeled analog of the androgen receptor's primary ligand that is currently being credentialed as a biomarker for prognosis, response, and pharmacodynamic effects of new therapeutics. As part of the biomarker qualification process, we prospectively assessed its reproducibility and repeatability in men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. We conducted a prospective multiinstitutional study of metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer patients undergoing 2 (test/retest) F-FDHT PET/CT scans on 2 consecutive days. Two independent readers evaluated all examinations and recorded SUVs, androgen receptor-positive tumor volumes, and total lesion uptake for the most avid lesion detected in each of 32 predefined anatomic regions. The relative absolute difference and reproducibility coefficient (RC) of each metric were calculated between the test and retest scans. Linear regression analyses, intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs), and Bland-Altman plots were used to evaluate repeatability of F-FDHT metrics. The coefficient of variation and ICC were used to assess interobserver reproducibility. Twenty-seven patients with 140 F-FDHT-avid regions were included. The best repeatability among F-FDHT uptake metrics was found for SUV metrics (SUV SUV, and SUV), with no significant differences in repeatability among them. Correlations between the test and retest scans were strong for all SUV metrics ( ≥ 0.92; ICC ≥ 0.97). The RCs of the SUV metrics ranged from 21.3% (SUV) to 24.6% (SUV). The test and retest androgen receptor-positive tumor volumes and TLU, respectively, were highly correlated ( and ICC ≥ 0.97), although variability was significantly higher than that for SUV (RCs > 46.4%). The prostate-specific antigen levels, Gleason score, weight, and age did not affect repeatability, nor did total injected activity, uptake measurement time, or differences in uptake time between the 2 scans. Including the most avid lesion per patient, the 5 most avid lesions per patient, only lesions 4.2 mL or more, only lesions with an SUV of 4 g/mL or more, or normalizing of SUV to area under the parent plasma activity concentration-time curve did not significantly affect repeatability. All metrics showed high interobserver reproducibility (ICC > 0.98; coefficient of variation < 0.2%-10.8%). Uptake metrics derived from F-FDHT PET/CT show high repeatability and interobserver reproducibility

    Molecular imaging of prostate cancer: translating molecular biology approaches into the clinical realm

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    The epidemiology of prostate cancer has dramatically changed since the introduction of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening in the 1980's. Most prostate cancers today are detected at early stages of the disease and are considered 'indolent'; however, some patients' prostate cancers demonstrate a more aggressive behaviour which leads to rapid progression and death. Increasing understanding of the biology underlying the heterogeneity that characterises this disease has led to a continuously evolving role of imaging in the management of prostate cancer. Functional and metabolic imaging techniques are gaining importance as the impact on the therapeutic paradigm has shifted from structural tumour detection alone to distinguishing patients with indolent tumours that can be managed conservatively (e.g., by active surveillance) from patients with more aggressive tumours that may require definitive treatment with surgery or radiation. In this review, we discuss advanced imaging techniques that allow direct visualisation of molecular interactions relevant to prostate cancer and their potential for translation to the clinical setting in the near future. The potential use of imaging to follow molecular events during drug therapy as well as the use of imaging agents for therapeutic purposes will also be discussed. KEY POINTS: • Advanced imaging techniques allow direct visualisation of molecular interactions in prostate cancer. • MRI/PET, optical and Cerenkov imaging facilitate the translation of molecular biology. • Multiple compounds targeting PSMA expression are currently undergoing clinical translation. • Other targets (e.g., PSA, prostate-stem cell antigen, GRPR) are in development
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