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Advanced scans could distinguish brain tumors from other damage
Issue date: 3/6/08
For a person with a brain injury, invasive and risky biopsies are usually needed in order to determine the type of lesion. However, with advances in neuroradiology, there are imaging techniques that are now being tested for their accuracy in detecting certain types of brain lesions.
In a recent article from the American Journal of Neuroradiology, researchers at Hopkins Hospital studied the effectiveness of different imaging methods in distinguishing between types of brain injuries. This study could allow for non-invasive diagnosis of brain tumors.
The group used two similar diagnostic tests, proton magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging (MRSI) and perfusion magnetic resonance (MR), to differentiate between high-grade and low-grade tumors.
High-grade tumors are considered neoplastic, meaning they exhibit new, uncontrolled tissue growth - they are potentially cancerous. There are other types of brain lesions that are considered nonneoplastic, such as injuries from strokes or demyelination, the loss of neurons' insulation that is related to conditions such as multiple sclerosis.
Conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can be used to diagnose brain tumors. However, MRI generally gives a structural picture of the brain without information about metabolism and blood flow, which are also important for tumor diagnosis. MRI is unable to accurately differentiate between neoplastic and nonneoplastic masses.
MRSI is a technique that combines the structural data from conventional MRI with chemical information from nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy.
The researchers hypothesized that MRSI should provide a high-resolution analysis of brain lesion anatomy, chemistry, and blood flow patterns, leading to a better ability to distinguish neoplastic from nonneoplastic lesions.
Perfusion MR, which provides information on cerebral blood flow and volume, would be used to improve or confirm a diagnosis made on the MRSI data.
In a recent article from the American Journal of Neuroradiology, researchers at Hopkins Hospital studied the effectiveness of different imaging methods in distinguishing between types of brain injuries. This study could allow for non-invasive diagnosis of brain tumors.
The group used two similar diagnostic tests, proton magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging (MRSI) and perfusion magnetic resonance (MR), to differentiate between high-grade and low-grade tumors.
High-grade tumors are considered neoplastic, meaning they exhibit new, uncontrolled tissue growth - they are potentially cancerous. There are other types of brain lesions that are considered nonneoplastic, such as injuries from strokes or demyelination, the loss of neurons' insulation that is related to conditions such as multiple sclerosis.
Conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can be used to diagnose brain tumors. However, MRI generally gives a structural picture of the brain without information about metabolism and blood flow, which are also important for tumor diagnosis. MRI is unable to accurately differentiate between neoplastic and nonneoplastic masses.
MRSI is a technique that combines the structural data from conventional MRI with chemical information from nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy.
The researchers hypothesized that MRSI should provide a high-resolution analysis of brain lesion anatomy, chemistry, and blood flow patterns, leading to a better ability to distinguish neoplastic from nonneoplastic lesions.
Perfusion MR, which provides information on cerebral blood flow and volume, would be used to improve or confirm a diagnosis made on the MRSI data.
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