Quantitative evaluation of contrast agent uptake in standard fat-suppressed dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI examinations of the breast.

Purpose: To propose a method to quantify T and contrast agent uptake in breast dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) examinations undertaken with standard clinical fat-suppressed MRI sequences and to demonstrate the proposed approach by comparing the enhancement characteristics of lobular and ductal carcinomas.

Methods: A standard fat-suppressed DCE of the breast was performed at 1.5 T (Siemens Aera), followed by the acquisition of a proton density (PD)-weighted sequence, also fat suppressed.

Investigating the influence of flip angle and k-space sampling on dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI breast examinations.

Rationale And Objectives: To retrospectively investigate the effect of flip angle (FA) and k-space sampling on the performance of dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE-) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) breast sequences.

Materials And Methods: Five DCE-MRI breast sequences were evaluated (10°, 14°, and 18° FAs; radial or linear k-space sampling), with 7-10 patients in each group (n = 45). All sequences were compliant with current technical breast screening guidelines.

Extra-thoracic staging of lung cancer.

This article reviews the staging of extra-thoracic metastatic lung cancer. The imaging strategy, including when to screen as well as the different modalities available for different sites of spread of disease are discussed. The emerging role of whole body positron emission tomography in screening for metastases is also explored.