Publications by authors named "F E J A Willemssen"

Purpose/objectives: To evaluate if stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has a durable effect on tumor control and can be delivered safely.

Materials/methods: Patients included in this retrospective study have been treated at our institution from January 2008 to December 2022. Eligibility criteria were diagnosis of HCC, BCLC stage 0-A-B, non-cirrhotic liver or liver with cirrhosis Child-Pugh class A, and a maximum of three lesions with a cumulative diameter of ≤ 6 cm.

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Aim: To investigate the utilization of MRI using a MRI liver protocol with extracellular contrast-enhanced series for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) surveillance in high-risk patients.

Methods: Consecutive high-risk patients of a western European cohort who underwent repeated liver MRI for HCC screening were included. Lesions were registered according to the Liver Reporting & Data System (LIRADS) 2018.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates the imaging characteristics in gadoxetic acid-enhanced MRI that differentiate focal nodular hyperplasia (FNH) from hepatocellular adenoma and carcinoma (HCA/HCC), particularly focusing on hyper- or isointensity observed in the hepatobiliary phase.
  • Researchers analyzed data from 124 patients with pathology-proven FNH or HCA/HCC, finding unique imaging traits such as specific patterns and fat content that help distinguish between these liver conditions.
  • The results suggest that if certain imaging characteristics indicative of HCA/HCC are present, further evaluation should be conducted to rule out B-catenin-activated HCA, especially when lesions show high levels of hyper- or isointensity.
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Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) comprises 75 to 85% of all primary liver cancers. Current guidelines recommend a biannual HCC surveillance using ultrasound (US) for high-risk patients. However, due to its low sensitivity for detection of early-stage HCC lesions, there is an urgency for more sensitive surveillance tools.

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Background: Guidelines are inconclusive on whether contrast-enhanced MRI using gadoxetic acid and diffusion-weighted imaging should be added routinely to CT in the investigation of patients with colorectal liver metastases who are scheduled for curative liver resection or thermal ablation, or both. Although contrast-enhanced MRI is reportedly superior than contrast-enhanced CT in the detection and characterisation of colorectal liver metastases, its effect on clinical patient management is unknown. We aimed to assess the clinical effect of an additional liver contrast-enhanced MRI on local treatment plan in patients with colorectal liver metastases amenable to local treatment, based on contrast-enhanced CT.

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