Assessment of aggressiveness of rectal cancer using 3-T MRI: correlation between the apparent diffusion coefficient as a potential imaging biomarker and histologic prognostic factors.

Background: Diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DW-MRI) permits non-invasive assessment of tumor characteristics.

Purpose: To assess the value of DW-MRI as a potential non-invasive marker of tumor aggressiveness in rectal cancer by analyzing the relationship between tumoral apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values of MRI and histopathologic prognostic parameters that are not affected by preoperative chemoradiation therapy.

Material And Methods: Forty patients with rectal cancer were assessed with primary staging 3-T MRI, including DWI, before undergoing surgical therapy.