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Scale helpful in evaluating prostate cancer MRIs

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A 5-point scale appears to be a useful component of a standardized evaluation system to differentiate between benign and malignant manifestations on three-dimensional magnetic resonance spectroscopic images of the prostate, Californian researchers report in the December issue of Radiology.

Dr. John Kurhanewicz of the University of California San Francisco and colleagues note that in the early stages of prostate cancer it is difficult to differentiate “patients with indolent and incidental disease from those with progressive and life-threatening disease.”To investigate use of a 5-point scale in evaluation, the researchers analyzed MRIs obtained from 22 patients before they underwent radical prostatectomy.After processing, the researchers identified 306 spectroscopic voxels of unequivocally benign peripheral zone tissue and 81 of malignant tissue.Two spectroscopists, who were unaware of how the voxels had been categorized, interpreted and scored their spectra using a scale ranging from 1 (benign) to 5 (malignant). The scores were based on prior research and current understanding of prostate cancer metabolism.The system had an accuracy of from 74.2 to 85.0% in differentiating benign from malignant tissue voxels. The specificity was 84.6% and 89.3%, when a score of 4 or 5 was used to identify cancer. When a score of 3 to 5 was used, sensitivities were 90% and 93%.The accuracy was good and interobserver agreement was “excellent,” conclude the investigators, who call for prospective clinical trials of their scoring approach.(Source: Radiology 2004;233:701-708: Reuters Health: Oncolink: November 2004.)


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Posted On: 25 November, 2004
Modified On: 16 January, 2014

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