Added value of diffusion weighted imaging in pediatric central nervous system embryonal tumors surveillance (original) (raw)

Pediatric Posterior Fossa Medulloblastoma: The Role of Diffusion Imaging in Identifying Molecular Groups

Journal of Neuroimaging, 2020

The molecular groups WNT activated (WNT), Sonic hedgehog activated (SHH), group 3, and group 4 are biologically and clinically distinct forms of medulloblastoma. We evaluated apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values' utility in differentiating/predicting medulloblastoma groups at the initial diagnostic imaging evaluation and prior to surgery. METHODS: We retrospectively measured the ADC values of the enhancing, solid portion of the tumor (EST) and of the whole tumor (WT) and performed Kruskal-Wallis testing to compare the absolute tumor ADC values and cerebellar and thalamic ratios of three medulloblastoma groups (WNT, SHH, and group 3/group 4 combined). RESULTS: Ninety-three children (65 males) were included. Fifty-seven children had group 3/group 4, 27 had SHH, and 9 had WNT medulloblastomas. The median absolute ADC values in the EST and WT were .719 × 10 −3 and .864 × 10 −3 mm 2 /s for group 3/group 4; .660 × 10 −3 and .965 × 10 −3 mm 2 /s for SHH; and .594 × 10 −3 and .728 × 10 −3 mm 2 /s for WNT medulloblastomas (P = .02 and .13). The median ratio of ADC values in the EST or the WT to normal cerebellar tissue was highest for group 3/group 4 and lowest for WNT medulloblastomas (P = .03 and .09), with similar results in pairwise comparisons of the corresponding thalamic ADC values (P = .02 and .06). CONCLUSION: ADC analysis of a tumor's contrast-enhancing solid portion may aid preoperative molecular classification/prediction of pediatric medulloblastomas and may facilitate optimal surgical treatment planning, reducing surgery-induced morbidity.

Surveillance neuroimaging of intracranial medulloblastoma in children: how effective, how often, and for how long?

Journal of Neurosurgery, 2003

Object. The goal of this paper was to review brain and spine images obtained in children with medulloblastomas to determine the risk factors for tumor recurrence and to assess the impact of surveillance imaging on patient outcomes among patients who remain alive 1 month postsurgery. Methods. Imaging studies and clinical data obtained in children with medulloblastomas, who presented between January 1987 and August 1998, were retrospectively reviewed. Images were termed surveillance if they were follow-up studies and symptom prompted if they were obtained to investigate new symptoms. One hundred seven patients (mean age 6 years and 3 months, range 2 months–15 years and 6 months) were entered into the study. Fifty-three children experienced tumor recurrence; 41 had one recurrence, nine had two, and three had three recurrences. Surveillance imaging revealed 10 of the first 53 recurrences and 15 of all 68 recurrences. When the first recurrence was identified by the emergence of symptoms ...

The utility of routine surveillance screening with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to detect tumour recurrence in children with low-grade central nervous system (CNS) tumours: a systematic review

Journal of neuro-oncology, 2018

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is routinely used as a surveillance tool to detect early asymptomatic tumour recurrence with a view to improving patient outcomes. This systematic review aimed to assess its utility in children with low-grade CNS tumours. Using standard systematic review methods, twelve databases were searched up to January 2017. Seven retrospective case series studies (n = 370 patients) were included, with average follow-up ranging from 5.6 to 7 years. No randomised controlled trials (RCTs) were identified. Due to study heterogeneity only a descriptive synthesis could be undertaken. Imaging was most frequent in the first year post-surgery (with 2-4 scans) reducing to around half this frequency in year two and annually thereafter for the duration of follow-up. Diagnostic yield ranged from 0.25 to 2%. Recurrence rates ranged from 5 to 41%, with most recurrences asymptomatic (range 65-100%). Collectively, 56% of recurrences had occurred within the first year post-treat...

The role of diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging in pediatric brain tumors

Childs Nervous System, 2006

Objectives Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) may enhance the radiographic diagnosis of pediatric brain tumors. This study reviews the DWI properties of pediatric brain tumors at our institution and examines their relationship to tumor grade and type. Materials and methods The preoperative DWI and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) characteristics of brain tumors in 41 children were compared with histologic diagnosis. Signal characteristics on DWI and ADC maps correlated well with tumor grade. High-grade lesions were hyperintense on DWI and hypointense on ADC maps. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value were 70, 100, 100, and 91%, respectively. Signal characteristics did not differ among different tumors of the same grade. All primitive neuroectodermal tumors showed diffusion restriction whereas none of the ependymomas did. Conclusions The signal characteristics on DWI and ADC maps appeared to be strongly correlated to grade in pediatric brain tumors and they may assist with preoperative diagnostic predictions.

Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Microscopy, a Novel Diagnostic Tool for Metastatic Cell Detection in the Cerebrospinal Fluid of Children with Medulloblastoma

Scientific Reports

In pediatric brain tumours, dissemination of malignant cells within the central nervous system confers poor prognosis and determines treatment intensity, but is often undetectable by imaging or cytology. This study describes the use of fluorescence lifetime (FLT) imaging microscopy (FLIM), a novel diagnostic tool, for detection of metastatic spread. The study group included 15 children with medulloblastoma and 2 with atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumour. Cells extracted from the tumour and the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) 2 weeks postoperatively and repeatedly during chemo/radiotherapy were subjected to nuclear staining followed by FLT measurement and cytological study. Control CSF samples were collected from patients with infectious/inflammatory disease attending the same hospital. Median FLT was prolonged in tumour cells (4.27 ± 0.28 ns; P < 2.2*10 −16) and CSF metastatic cells obtained before chemo/radiotherapy (6.28 ± 0.22 ns; P < 2.2*10 −16); normal in inflammatory control cells (2.6 ± 0.04 ns) and cells from children without metastasis before chemo/radiotherapy (2.62 ± 0.23 ns; P = 0.858) and following treatment (2.62 ± 0.21 ns; P = 0.053); and short in CSF metastatic cells obtained after chemo/radiotherapy (2.40 ± 0.2 ns; P < 2.2*10 −16). FLIM is a simple test that can potentially identify CSF spread of brain tumours. FLT changes in accordance with treatment, with significant prolonged median values in tumours and metastases. More accurate detection of metastatic cells may guide personalised treatment and improve the therapeutic outcome. Brain tumours account for at least one-fourth of all cases of cancer in the pediatric age group and are the leading cause of cancer-related death in this population 1, 2. Embryonal tumours are the second most common type after gliomas. Three-fourths of embryonal tumors are medulloblastomas 3 , making medulloblastoma the most common malignant tumour of childhood (average age at diagnosis, 6 years).

European Society for Paediatric Oncology (SIOPE) MRI guidelines for imaging patients with central nervous system tumours

Child's Nervous System, 2021

Introduction Standardisation of imaging acquisition is essential in facilitating multicentre studies related to childhood CNS tumours. It is important to ensure that the imaging protocol can be adopted by centres with varying imaging capabilities without compromising image quality. Materials and method An imaging protocol has been developed by the Brain Tumour Imaging Working Group of the European Society for Paediatric Oncology (SIOPE) based on consensus among its members, which consists of neuroradiologists, imaging scientists and paediatric neuro-oncologists. This protocol has been developed to facilitate SIOPE led studies and regularly reviewed by the imaging working group. Results The protocol consists of essential MRI sequences with imaging parameters for 1.5 and 3 Tesla MRI scanners and a set of optional sequences that can be used in appropriate clinical settings. The protocol also provides guidelines for early post-operative imaging and surveillance imaging. The complementary use of multimodal advanced MRI including diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), MR spectroscopy and perfusion imaging is encouraged, and optional guidance is provided in this publication. Conclusion The SIOPE brain tumour imaging protocol will enable consistent imaging across multiple centres involved in paediatric CNS tumour studies.

Do Intratumoral And Peritumoral Apparent Diffusion Coefficient (ADC) Values Have A Role In The Diagnosis Of Pediatric Brain Tumors?

Journal of Dr. Behcet Uz Children s Hospital, 2020

INTRODUCTION: The motion of water particles within biological tissues, which is called random Brownian motion, is detected at the microscopic level by Diffusion-Weighted Imaging (DWI) sequence of Magnetic Resonance Image technique. The Apparent Diffusion Coefficient (ADC) calculated on DWI has been used for tumor diagnosis and grading. The purpose of this study was to evaluate of ADC values in the differential diagnosis of supratentorial and infratentorial pediatric brain tumors and to reveal the difference of peritumoral ADC measurements of pediatric patients from adult patients. METHODS: All of the 56 pediatric patients included in this retrospective study had lesions >1 cm in diameter on magnetic resonance image and all of the diagnosies were confirmed by histopathology. Intratumoral and peritumoral ADC values and ratios were measured in diffusion weighted Magnetic Resonance Image. RESULTS: The 58.9% (n=33) of these tumors were supratentorial and 41.1% (n=23) were infratentori...

Postoperative evaluation for intracranial recurrence of medulloblastoma: MR findings with gadopentetate dimeglumine

AJNR. American journal of neuroradiology, 1994

To characterize the gadopentetate dimeglumine-enhanced MR features of recurrent medulloblastoma. The postsurgical gadopentetate dimeglumine-enhanced MR images of 48 patients (206 head examinations) with prior resection of medulloblastoma were retrospectively evaluated for enhancement in the brain parenchyma, meninges (dura, pia-arachnoid), and ventricles. Nineteen patients had recurrent tumor as determined by clinical course and positive imaging studies. Seventeen patients with recurrent disease had intracranial enhancement predominating in the pia-arachnoid (63%) or as a focal nodular brain lesion (26%). Three of these patients also had intraventricular metastases. None of the clinically healthy patients had these findings. One patient had recurrent tumor presenting within the fourth ventricle. Only 3 of 8 intraventricular lesions observed in the 4 patients initially enhanced with gadopentetate dimeglumine. Another patient with recurrent disease had extensive skeletal metastases wi...