Hospital Buyer

A study published in April indicates that MRI may be the optimal modality to complete disease staging for patients who have prostate cancer before they undergo treatment with radiation therapy.The key benefits of MRI assessment include detection and measurement of disease spread outside the prostate capsule. Diagnostic Imaging posted the study findings.

The research team based at the University of California, San Francisco reviewed the films of 80 patients with prostate cancer retrospectively. Patients had all undergone MR scanning prior to being treated with external beam radiation. Data noted by the research team included tumor findings, treatment delivered, and disease outcomes following therapy.

Regression analysis was employed to correlate survival with disease characteristics. MRI was strongly correlated with both disease spread and post-treatment recurrence. Univariate Cox analysis, alternatively, revealed that three factors all had a strong relationship with the development of metastases: serum prostate-specific antigen levels, presence of extracapsular extension at baseline from MRI, and the degree of extracapsular extension. The extent of extension was a statistically significant independent predictor.

Current national recommendations call for biopsy as the standard procedure to determine disease staging. This procedure, however, is limited in the extent of disease that can be captured. Treatment plans are generally derived based on staging information.

The research team noted the benefits of completing MRI, but further questioned the utility of of such assessment across all patients. While there are clearly benefits from such, reimbursement is not always available from insurers. As well, many facilities are not equipped to support such evaluation. Additional studies are required to assess whether this imaging modality needs to be integrated into the standard of care for disease staging in prostate cancer patients.

May 26, 2008 Related topics: Imaging, Diagnostic, Renal & Urology