Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Endometrial Carcinoma:

Magnetic resonance imaging evaluation of gynecological mass lesions: A comprehensive analysis with histopathological correlation

Evaluating gynecological mass lesions and reviewing their morphological characteristics based on their imaging appearance on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and correlating the MRI findings with histopathological findings, was the central theme of our study. This observational cross-sectional study was conducted on 60 female patients with clinically suspected gynecological mass lesions upon physical examination and/or ultrasonography, referred for MRI at a tertiary care hospital over a 1-year period between June 2022 and July 2023. A broad spectrum of differential diagnoses of gynecological masses was observed. In our study, the ratio of benign versus malignant disease was 1.6:1, with 37 benign and 23 malignant masses identified. The most common benign masses were uterine fibroids (n = 14; 23.3%), followed by endometriosis (n = 8; 13.3%), and ovarian dermoid cysts (n = 4; 6.6%). Among the malignant lesions, cervical cancer was the most common (n = 11; 18.3%), followed by endometrial carcinoma (n = 7; 11.6%), ovarian carcinoma (n = 3; 5%), and vaginal carcinoma (n = 2; 3%). Benign lesions mostly appeared hypo- to isointense on T1-weighted imaging and iso- to hyperintense on T2-weighted imaging, while malignant lesions appeared isointense on T1-weighted and hyperintense on T2-weighted imaging. Hemorrhage and fat were well appreciated on MRI and aided in diagnosis. T2 shading was present in 7 out of 8 endometriotic cysts, demonstrating a specificity of 100% and a sensitivity of 83%. For determining parametrial invasion in cervical carcinoma, MRI showed an accuracy of 91%, specificity of 100%, and positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and sensitivity of 100%, 75%, and 88%, respectively. In cases of endometrial carcinoma, MRI demonstrated a sensitivity and specificity of 87% and 91%, respectively, with a positive predictive value of 87% and a negative predictive value of 91% for identifying myometrial invasion greater than 50%. Compared to other modalities, MRI provided substantial information regarding uterine and adnexal masses and surrounding structures, facilitating accurate staging of lesions.

Ultrasound and blind endometrial sampling for detection of endometrial cancer in women with postmenopausal bleeding

OBJECTIVES

This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (diagnostic). The objectives are as follows: To assess the diagnostic accuracy of endometrial sampling with histology in the diagnosis of endometrial cancer in women with postmenopausal bleeding and thickened endometrium on ultrasound. Diagnosis will be verified by the reference standards, hysteroscopy with histology, obtained by targeted (such as grasp biopsy of the endometrium or resection of focal pathology) or global sampling (with dilation and curettage), and histology of hysterectomy specimens. Secondary objectives To determine the diagnostic accuracy of different sampling devices and methods in the detection of endometrial cancer To assess the diagnostic accuracy of endometrial sampling devices and methods to detect endometrial hyperplasia To determine accuracy in diagnosing endometrial cancer and endometrial hyperplasia at different endometrial thicknesses of 3 mm, 4 mm and 5 mm To investigate sources of heterogeneity.

Gynecological carcinosarcomas: Overview and future perspectives

Gynecologic carcinosarcoma (CS) are rare and aggressive tumors composed of high-grade carcinoma and sarcoma. Carcinosarcoma account for less than 5% of uterine and ovarian carcinoma and patients have poor outcome with a 5-year overall survival of less than 30%. In early-stage setting, the treatment mainstay is surgery and adjuvant chemoradiotherapy or adjuvant chemotherapy in uterine (UCS) and ovarian CS (OCS), respectively. In metastatic or advanced stage disease, chemotherapy is the rule with a lower response rate and poorer prognosis compared to other high-grade carcinomas. Although very few treatment options are available, CS are often excluded from the clinical trials precluding therapeutic improvement. However, recent molecular advances are paving the way for new therapeutic strategies. In the current proposal, we extensively review the uterine and ovarian carcinosarcomas including epidemiology, pathology, genomic landscape, as well as current therapies and future perspectives.

Pan-Asian adapted ESMO Clinical Practice Guidelines for the diagnosis, treatment and follow-up of patients with endometrial cancer

The most recent version of the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Clinical Practice Guidelines for the diagnosis, treatment and follow-up of patients with endometrial cancer was published in 2022. It was therefore decided, by both the ESMO and the Indian Society of Medical and Paediatric Oncology (ISMPO), to convene a virtual meeting in July 2022 to adapt the ESMO 2022 guidelines to take into account the variations in the management of endometrial cancer in Asia. These guidelines represent the consensus opinion of a panel of Asian experts representing the oncological societies of China (CSCO), India (ISMPO), Indonesia (ISHMO), Japan (JSMO), Korea (KSMO), Malaysia (MOS), the Philippines (PSMO), Singapore (SSO), Taiwan (TOS) and Thailand (TSCO). Voting was based on scientific evidence and was conducted independently of the current treatment practices and treatment access constraints in the different Asian countries, which were discussed when appropriate. The aim of this guideline manuscript is to provide guidance for the optimisation and harmonisation of the management of patients with endometrial cancer across the different regions of Asia, drawing on the evidence provided by Western and Asian trials whilst respecting the variations in clinical presentation, diagnostic practices including molecular profiling and disparities in access to therapeutic options, including drug approvals and reimbursement strategies.

Endometrial cancer

Although endometrial cancer management remains challenging, a deeper understanding of the genetic diversity as well as the drivers of the various pathogenic states of this disease has led to development of divergent management approaches in an effort to improve therapeutic precision in this complex malignancy. This comprehensive review provides an update on the epidemiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis and molecular classification, recent advancements in disease management, as well as important patient quality-of-life considerations and emerging developments in the rapidly evolving therapeutic landscape of endometrial cancers.

Detection of deep myometrial invasion in endometrial cancer MR imaging based on multi-feature fusion and probabilistic support vector machine ensemble

The depth of myometrial invasion affects the treatment and prognosis of patients with endometrial cancer (EC), conventionally evaluated using MR imaging (MRI). However, only a few computer-aided diagnosis methods have been reported for identifying deep myometrial invasion (DMI) using MRI. Moreover, these existing methods exhibit relatively unsatisfactory sensitivity and specificity. This study proposes a novel computerized method to facilitate the accurate detection of DMI on MRI. This method requires only the corpus uteri region provided by humans or computers instead of the tumor region. We also propose a geometric feature called LS to describe the irregularity of the tissue structure inside the corpus uteri triggered by EC, which has not been leveraged for the DMI prediction model in other studies. Texture features are extracted and then automatically selected by recursive feature elimination. Utilizing a feature fusion strategy of strong and weak features devised in this study, multiple probabilistic support vector machines incorporate LS and texture features, which are then merged to form the ensemble model EPSVM. The model performance is evaluated via leave-one-out cross-validation. We make the following comparisons, EPSVM versus the commonly used classifiers such as random forest, logistic regression, and naive Bayes; EPSVM versus the models using LS or texture features alone. The results show that EPSVM attains an accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, and F1 score of 93.7%, 94.7%, 93.3%, and 87.8%, all of which are higher than those of the commonly used classifiers and the models using LS or texture features alone. Compared with the methods in existing studies, EPSVM exhibits high performance in terms of both sensitivity and specificity. Moreover, LS can achieve an accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity of 89.9%, 89.5%, and 90.0%. Thus, the devised geometric feature LS is significant for DMI detection. The fusion of LS and texture features in the proposed EPSVM can provide more reliable prediction. The computer-aided classification based on the proposed method can assist radiologists in accurately identifying DMI on MRI.

Survival rates of patients who undergo minimally invasive surgery for endometrial cancer with cervical involvement

Objective: Compare the oncologic outcomes of patients with intermediate-risk endometrial cancer who were staged by minimally invasive surgery with the outcomes of patients who underwent open surgery. Methods: Data from 206 patients with intermediate-risk endometrial cancer who were treated between January 2009 and January 2019 were reviewed. The patients' data were retrieved from five institutions. The patients were divided into two groups: those who underwent open surgery and those who underwent minimally invasive surgery. Tumor characteristics, recurrence rate, disease-free survival, and overall survival were compared according to surgical approach. Results: Among the 206 patients included in this study, 76 underwent open surgery (36.9%) and 130 underwent MIS (63.1%). In patients with stage IB endometrial cancer, the recurrence rate, disease-free survival, and overall survival were not significantly different between those who underwent minimally invasive surgery and those who underwent open surgery. However, in patients with stage II endometrial cancer, the recurrence rate was significantly higher among those who underwent minimally invasive surgery (37.5% vs. 5.3%, p = 0.013). Patients with stage II endometrial cancer who underwent minimally invasive surgery had a significantly lower disease-free survival (p = 0.012) than those who underwent open surgery, however, the overall survival (p = 0.252) was similar between the two groups. Conclusion: Minimally invasive surgery results in less favorable survival outcomes than open surgery in patients with stage II endometrial cancer.

Role of Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography in Preoperative Assessment of Carcinoma Endometrium-a Retrospective Analysis

PET/CT has made significant inroads into routine oncological practice in recent times. In our study, we aim to determine its value in preoperative assessment of endometrial carcinoma. A retrospective study between January 2011 and March 2016 was conducted; we included all cases of carcinoma endometrium with a preoperative PET/CT scan. PET/CT images were analyzed and correlated with histological findings after surgical staging. A total of 46 cases were analyzed, mean age was 59.8 years, BMI 30.8 kg/m2, and most common histology endometrioid type (69.5%). We correlated PET/CT findings with histopathology as reference standard. PET/CT had a sensitivity of 40%, moderate specificity (75%) and accuracy (71.7%), good NPV (91.2%), but poor PPV (16.7%) for lymph node involvement. A total of 10 (21.7%) cases were detected to have distant metabolically active lesions on PET/CT, seven out of these were positive for malignancy. And 90% of them were either non-endometrioid type or grade two and higher. We found that SUV of primary tumor was significantly higher in patients with deep myometrial invasion (p = 0.018), and high-risk histological type of tumor (p = 0.022), though not statistically significant when lymph nodal involvement (p = 0.9), cervical involvement (p = 0.56), or histological grade (p = 0.84) were considered. Sensitivity and specificity of PET/CT in staging endometrial cancer is not high enough to reliably tailor lymphadenectomy. Although SUV of the primary tumor was significantly higher in patients with deep myometrial invasion and high-risk histological type, it's usefulness in classifying patients into predefined risk groups seems to be limited. However, it is useful in detecting distant metastasis especially in high-grade and non-endometrioid type of tumors. Thus, implementation of PET/CT as a surrogate for surgical staging of endometrial cancer remains enigmatic and is open to further research.

Asymptomatic Endometrial Thickening of 8 mm or Greater on Postcontrast Computed Tomography in Postmenopausal Women Is a Predictor of Endometrial Cancer

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this study was to assess the value of opportunistic endometrial thickness measurement on postcontrast computed tomography (CT) as a predictor of endometrial cancer in asymptomatic postmenopausal women.

METHODS

For this Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act-compliant, institutional review board-approved retrospective study with waiver of informed consent, our institution's tumor board database was searched for postmenopausal patients, diagnosed with endometrial cancer between August 2003 and December 2016 and who had a postcontrast pelvic CT within 12 months prior to the cancer diagnosis (while they were asymptomatic)-"cancer group." Same number of age-matched patients who had postcontrast pelvic CT constituted the noncancer control group. Endometrial thickness was measured on sagittal postcontrast CT images.

RESULTS

After applying exclusion criteria, 22 asymptomatic patients who were diagnosed with endometrial cancer within 1 year after the CT comprised the cancer group, and 22 age-matched patients comprised the control group. Average endometrial thickness was 18.7 ± 14.8 mm (range, 2-70 mm) in the cancer group and 3.6 ± 2.5 mm (range, 1.8-10 mm) in the control group (P < 0.0001). Endometrial thickness 8 mm or greater predicted endometrial cancer with 86% sensitivity and 91% specificity in these asymptomatic patients. Area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for endometrial thickness as a predictor of endometrial cancer was 0.92.

CONCLUSIONS

Endometrial thickness 8 mm or greater on sagittal postcontrast CT was shown to have high sensitivity in opportunistic detection of endometrial cancer in asymptomatic postmenopausal women.

Preoperative Magnetic Resonance Volumetry in Predicting Myometrial Invasion, Lymphovascular Space Invasion, and Tumor Grade: Is It Valuable in International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics Stage I Endometrial Cancer?

Objective

The aim of this retrospective single-center study was to evaluate the relationship between maximum tumor size, tumor volume, tumor volume ratio (TVR) based on preoperative magnetic resonance (MR) volumetry, and negative histological prognostic parameters (deep myometrial invasion [MI], lymphovascular space invasion, tumor histological grade, and subtype) in International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics stage I endometrial cancer.

Methods/Materials

Preoperative pelvic MR imaging studies of 68 women with surgical-pathologic diagnosis of International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics stage I endometrial cancer were reviewed for assessment of MR volumetry and qualitative assessment of MI. Volume of the tumor and uterus was measured with manual tracing of each section on sagittal T2-weighted images. Tumor volume ratio was calculated according to the following formula: TVR = (total tumor volume/total uterine volume) × 100. Receiver operating characteristics curve was performed to investigate a threshold for TVR associated with MI. The Mann-Whitney U test, Kruskal-Wallis test, and linear regression analysis were applied to evaluate possible differences between tumor size, tumor volume, TVR, and negative prognostic parameters.

Results

Receiver operating characteristics curve analysis of TVR for prediction of deep MI was statistically significant (P = 0.013). An optimal TVR threshold of 7.3% predicted deep myometrial invasion with 85.7% sensitivity, 46.8% specificity, 41.9% positive predictive value, and 88.0% negative predictive value. Receiver operating characteristics curve analyses of TVR, tumor size, and tumor volume for prediction of tumor histological grade or lymphovascular space invasion were not significant. The concordance between radiologic and pathologic assessment for MI was almost excellent (κ value, 0.799; P < 0.001). Addition of TVR to standard radiologic assessment of deep MI increased the sensitivity from 90.5% to 95.2%.

Conclusions

Tumor volume ratio, based on preoperative MR volumetry, seems to predict deep MI independently in stage I endometrial cancer with insufficient sensitivity and specificity. Its value in clinical practice for risk stratification models in endometrial cancer has to be studied in larger cohort of patients.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Pelvic Masses: A Compartmental Approach

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is often "one stop shop" for evaluating female pelvic masses that helps in diagnosis, staging, and restaging of these tumors. A pelvic mass can arise from any tissue present within the pelvis. Although most masses in the female pelvis arise from the reproductive organs, masses may also arise from the gastrointestinal tract, urinary system, adjacent soft tissues, peritoneum, etc. It may not always be possible to determine the site of origin or distinguish these masses based on imaging characteristics. However, familiarity with the clinicopathologic and MRI features of most common pelvic masses helps in narrowing the differential diagnosis. Diagnosis of these masses needs a holistic approach as required for any tumor including clinical history, laboratory data, and imaging characteristics. We focus on MRI characteristics of commonly encountered pelvic masses. A compartmental imaging approach is discussed in this article that helps in identifying and characterizing these masses.

The diagnostic value of multimodality MRI in endometrial carcinoma staging

Background Multimodality magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is an imaging technology that is used to integrate the structural and functional information of lesions. MRI can determine the staging of endometrial carcinoma, provide guidance for selection of surgical treatment and postoperative prognostic assessment, and has an important role in improving the survival of patients with endometrial carcinoma. Purpose To evaluate multimodality MRI staging accuracy for endometrial carcinoma based on the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO 2009) staging system. Material and Methods This is a retrospective study of the complete clinical and surgical pathology data from 83 patients with endometrial carcinoma treated between June 2011 and August 2015. Using a blind design, the preoperative clinical staging according to the current FIGO2009 MRI-based staging for each endometrial carcinoma was analyzed and corrected by postoperative histopathological results, which served as the staging standard. The role of multimodality MRI on clinical staging accuracy for endometrial carcinoma was studied. Results Based on the pathological evaluation after surgery, the 83 endometrial carcinoma patients were staged according to the current FIGO2009 staging criteria as: stage I, n = 56; stage II, n = 17; stage III, n = 7; and stage IV, n = 3. The multimodality MRI staging accuracy for endometrial carcinoma stages I-IV by FIGO2009 were 91.6% (76/83), 91.6% (76/83), 92.8% (77/83), and 97.6% (81/83), respectively. Conclusion Multimodality MRI is an important imaging tool in the pre-operative clinical staging of endometrial carcinoma. The current FIGO staging system appears to be a concise, reasonable, and practical set of criteria for the clinical management of endometrial carcinoma.

Application of FLASH-3D dynamic contrast-enhanced imaging for diagnosis of endometrial carcinoma

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the application and value of fast low-angle shot three-dimensional (FLASH-3D) dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI for the pre-operative staging of endometrial carcinoma.

METHODS

This prospective study enrolled 48 patients with complete clinical data and pathologically confirmed endometrial carcinoma from July 2012 to March 2014. After routine MRI examination, subjects underwent FLASH-3D dynamic contrast-enhanced examination. The dynamically enhanced features of the uterine wall and tumours were analyzed. FLASH-3D pre-operative staging and findings in relation to myometrial invasion were compared with post-operative pathological results in a double-blind manner.

RESULTS

There were 48 cases of pathologically proven endometrial carcinoma, including 34 patients with Stage I (Stage Ia 22 cases and Stage Ib 12 cases), 9 with Stage II, 3 with Stage III and 2 with Stage IV. The staging accuracy for endometrial carcinoma was 81% (39/48) using FLASH-3D dynamic contrast-enhanced sequences. The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy for the determination of deep myometrial invasion were 84%, 90% and 88%, respectively. There was no significant difference compared with the results of post-operative pathology (p > 0.05).

CONCLUSION

FLASH-3D dynamic contrast-enhanced imaging may be valuable for the early diagnosis and pre-operative staging of endometrial carcinoma. Its high accuracy for assessing deep myometrial invasion makes FLASH-3D imaging an important tool for selecting the optimal therapeutic protocol and for prognosis estimation.

ADVANCES IN KNOWLEDGE

FLASH-3D can significantly improve the accurate assessment of the depth of tumour invasion into the myometrium and may thus help to guide clinical surgical choices and post-operative evaluation. FLASH-3D is thus a promising technique for the routine examination of female pelvic tumours.

Gynecologic oncologic imaging with PET/CT

FDG-PET/CT has been evaluated in a variety of gynecologic malignancies in a variety of settings and is approved by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services for the initial and subsequent treatment strategies of these malignancies. Cervical cancer is typically very FDG avid, and FDG-PET/CT appears to be most valuable for initial staging, radiation therapy planning, and detection of recurrent disease. For ovarian cancer, the most value of FDG-PET/CT appears to be for detecting recurrent disease in the setting of rising CA-125 level and negative or equivocal anatomical imaging studies. Initial studies evaluating response to therapy are promising and further work in this area is needed. FDG uptake in both nonmalignant and physiological processes in the pelvis can make interpretation of FDG-PET/CT in this region challenging and knowledge of these entities and patterns can avoid misinterpretation. Some of the most common findings relate to the cyclic changes that occur as part of the menstrual cycle in premenopausal women. Mucinous tumors and low-volume or peritoneal carcinomatosis are causes of false-negative results on FDG-PET/CT studies. As new tracers are developed, comparisons with patient outcomes and standards of care (eg, FDG-PET/CT) will be needed.

Imaging in endometrial carcinoma

Endometrial carcinoma (EC) is the most common gynecologic malignancy in the United States. Prognosis depends on patient age, histological grade, depth of myometrial invasion and/or cervical invasion, and the presence of lymph node metastases. Although EC is staged surgically according to the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) system, preoperative imaging can assist in optimal treatment planning. Several imaging techniques such as transvaginal ultrasonography (TVUS), computed tomography (CT), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have been used as diagnostic tools for preoperative staging of EC. Recently, positron emission tomography (PET), PET/CT, and PET/MRI have also been used in staging these patients. In this article, we review the value of imaging in diagnosis, staging, treatment planning, and detection of recurrent disease in patients with EC.

Image-guided high-dose-rate brachytherapy in inoperable endometrial cancer

Inoperable endometrial cancer may be treated with curative aim using radical radiotherapy alone. The radiation techniques are external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) alone, EBRT plus brachytherapy and brachytherapy alone. Recently, high-dose-rate brachytherapy has been used instead of low-dose-rate brachytherapy. Image-guided brachytherapy enables sufficient coverage of tumour and reduction of dose to the organs at risk, thus increasing the therapeutic ratio of treatment. Local control rates with three-dimensional brachytherapy appear better than with conventional techniques (about 90-100% and 70-90%, respectively).

Three-dimensional ultrasound with volume contrast imaging for preoperative assessment of myometrial invasion and cervical involvement in women with endometrial cancer

OBJECTIVES

To evaluate the accuracy of transvaginal three-dimensional ultrasound with volume contrast imaging (VCI) for preoperative assessment of depth of myometrial invasion and cervical involvement in women with endometrial cancer.

METHODS

Transvaginal volume acquisition of the uterus was performed in 60 consecutive patients with histological diagnosis of endometrial cancer who were scheduled for primary surgical treatment. Depth of myometrial invasion and presence or absence of cervical involvement were assessed using VCI in multiplanar display mode. Results were compared to final postoperative histopathological findings. Patients with histological high-risk cell types, including Grade 3 endometrioid adenocarcinoma, clear cell carcinoma, papillary serous carcinoma and carcinosarcoma, were excluded.

RESULTS

Forty patients were included in the analysis. The accuracy of VCI in assessing single-stage myometrial invasion (superficial or deep) was 92.5%. In the prediction of deep myometrial invasion, sensitivity, specificity, PPV and NPV of VCI were 100%, 89.7%, 78.6% and 100%, respectively. The accuracy of VCI in assessing cervical involvement was 90.0%. Sensitivity, specificity, PPV and NPV of VCI in predicting the presence of cervical involvement were 100%, 86.2%, 73.3% and 100%, respectively.

CONCLUSION

Transvaginal VCI is an uncomplicated method that is able to predict with reasonable accuracy the depth of myometrial invasion and cervical involvement in women with endometrial cancer.

Gynecologic tumors: how to communicate imaging results to the surgeon

Gynecologic cancers are a leading cause of morbidity and mortality for female patients, with an estimated 88,750 new cancer cases and 29,520 deaths in the United States in 2012. To offer the best treatment options to patients it is important that the radiologist, surgeon, radiation oncologist, and gynecologic oncologist work together with a multidisciplinary approach. Using the available diagnostic imaging modalities, the radiologist must give appropriate information to the surgeon in order to plan the best surgical approach and its timing.

MRI is highly specific in determining primary cervical versus endometrial cancer when biopsy results are inconclusive

AIM

To evaluate utility of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in determining the primary site of endometrial versus cervical tumours when the biopsy results are inconclusive.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Forty-eight patients who underwent a total hysterectomy for unknown primary adenocarcinoma of the uterus after endometrial and/or endocervical biopsies were included in the study. The 48 available pelvic MRI images were reviewed by two body radiologists independently and jointly to resolve discordance, blinded to any clinical and pathological information. The clinical information and histopathology were reviewed by a radiology fellow and a pathologist specializing is gynaecological oncology. The final surgical pathology was used as the reference standard to confirm the origin of the primary tumour.

RESULTS

The radiologists correctly identified the primary sites in 85% of the cases (41/48). There was substantial agreement between the two readers (kappa statistics = 0.79). Both radiologists found that T2 and dynamic T1-weighted images (WI) were most helpful in making the diagnosis, and dynamic T1WI helped resolve problematic cases. The sensitivity and specificity for detecting endometrial and cervical cancer on MRI were 88% and 88% and 75% and 93%, respectively.

CONCLUSION

MRI has high sensitivity and specificity in determining the origin of the primary endometrial versus cervical tumours when endometrial/endocervical curettage is inconclusive.

Accuracy of MRI with an endorectal coil for staging endometrial cancer

BACKGROUND

The very good results of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) using an endorectal coil in staging prostate cancer at 1.5T suggested that this imaging technique might be able to be used to stage endometrial cancer, the most common tumor in postmenopausal women.

PURPOSE

To evaluate the accuracy of MRI with an endorectal surface coil for staging primary endometrial carcinoma.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

A total of 33 consecutive patients with biopsy-proven endometrial cancer underwent 1.5T MRI with an endorectal surface coil (eMRI) using sagittal and axial T2-weighted (T2w) turbo spin echo (TSE), axial T1 gradient echo 2D fat-saturated (fs), sagittal T1 gradient echo 3D with and without contrast enhancement (CE), and axial T1 TSE fs CE sequence. Evaluation of local tumor extension was based on the revised standard TNM classification for endometrial cancer. eMRI staging was compared with the histopathological results after surgery.

RESULTS

A total of 33 consecutive patients underwent eMRI for staging endometrial cancer, and 21 of these underwent primary surgery. The histological stages were as follows: T1a (n = 8), T1b (n = 10), T2b (n = 2), and T3a (n = 1). Overall staging accuracy by eMRI was 71% (15 of 21). With regard to depth of myometrial invasion, eMRI correctly diagnosed stage T1a in 75% (6/8) and stage T1b in 80% (8/10). eMRI overstaged the tumor in four patients and understaged it in two.

CONCLUSION

eMRI is highly accurate in staging myometrial invasion. However, eMRI at 1.5T does not seem to be significantly more accurate than pelvic MRI without an endorectal coil at 1.5T for staging primary endometrial cancer. eMRI for endometrial carcinoma therefore might not meet expectations compared with the results obtained using eMRI for staging prostate cancer at 1.5T.

Staging cancer of the uterus: a national audit of MRI accuracy

AIM

To report the results of a nationwide audit of the accuracy of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) staging in uterine body cancer when staging myometrial invasion, cervical extension, and lymph node spread.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

All UK radiology departments were invited to participate using a web-based tool for submitting anonymized data for a 12 month period. MRI staging was compared with histopathological staging using target accuracies of 85, 86, and 70% respectively.

RESULTS

Of the departments performing MRI staging of endometrial cancer, 37/87 departments contributed. Targets for MRI staging were achieved for two of the three standards nationally with diagnostic accuracy for depth of myometrial invasion, 82%; for cervical extension, 90%; and for pelvic nodal involvement, 94%; the latter two being well above the targets. However, only 13/37 (35%) of individual centres met the target for assessing depth of myometrial invasion, 31/36 (86%) for cervical extension and 31/34 (91%) for pelvic nodal involvement. Statistical analysis demonstrated no significant difference for the use of intravenous contrast medium, but did show some evidence of increasing accuracy in assessment of depth of myometrial invasion with increasing caseload.

CONCLUSION

Overall performance in the UK was good, with only the target for assessment of depth of myometrial invasion not being met. Inter-departmental variation was seen. One factor that may improve performance in assessment of myometrial invasion is a higher caseload. No other clear factor to improve performance were identified.

Province wide clinical governance network for clinical audit for quality improvement in endometrial cancer management

BACKGROUND

According to the hub-and-spoke model introduced in the Provincial Healthcare System of Reggio Emilia, early endometrial cancer is treated in peripheral low-volume hospitals (spokes) by general gynecologist, whereas more complex cancers are treated by gynecological oncologists at the main hospital (hub).

OBJECTIVE

To guarantee a uniformly high standard of care to all patients with endometrial cancer treated in hub and spoke hospitals of Reggio Emilia Province.

METHODS

The specialists of the 5 hospitals of Reggio Emilia Province instituted an inter hospital and multidisciplinary oncology group to write common and shared guidelines based on evidence-based medicine through the use of clinical audit. They valued the process indicators before and after guidelines introduction identifying the site of improvement and verifying the standard achievement.

RESULTS

Diagnostic hysteroscopy use increased significantly from preguideline period, 53%, to postguideline period, 74%. Magnetic resonance use and accuracy increased significantly from preguideline to postguideline periods: 8.1% to 35.3% and 37.3% to 74.7%, respectively. Laparoscopy use increased from 1.6% (preguideline) to 18.6 (postguideline). Early surgical complications decreased from 16% (preguideline) to 9% (postguideline). Radiotherapy use increased from 14.% (preguideline) to 32.3% (postguideline).

CONCLUSION

It is possible for a provincial oncology group to build an oncology network providing an improvement in the assistance of patients with endometrial cancer through the use of clinical audit. Clinical audit made it possible to obtain the full attendance of specialists of various disciplines involved in the treatment of endometrial cancer to optimize response time schematizing process.

Diagnostic possibility of diffusion tensor imaging for the evaluation of myometrial invasion in endometrial cancer: an ex vivo study

PURPOSE

To investigate the feasibility of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) for evaluating the myometrial invasion of uterine endometrial cancer.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Twelve specimens of uterine endometrial cancer were obtained. The depth of myometrial invasion was classified as stage E (limited to the endometrium; n = 4), stage S (superficial invasion of less than 50% of the myometrium; n = 5), or stage D (deep invasion of greater than 50% of the myometrium; n = 3). The specimens were fixed in 10% formalin and stored at 4°C before imaging. At 15 hours after fixation, MRI was performed using a 4.7-T experimental imager/spectrometer system.

RESULTS

We found a high fractional anisotropy (FA) value zone (anisotropic zone) at the myometrium adjacent to the tumor on FA maps of histopathological stage S and stage D cancers, whereas the anisotropic zone did not exist in stage E cancers. Histopathological analysis showed that compared to the other regions, the anisotropic zone had tightly packed stromal tissue. The disruption of the anisotropic zone was consistent with myometrial invasion.

CONCLUSION

Our ex vivo study suggests that DTI might be a useful tool for the diagnosis of myometrial invasion of uterine endometrial cancer ex vivo.

Radiological assessment of gynecologic malignancies

Patients with gynecologic malignancies are evaluated with a combination of imaging modalities including ultrasonography (US), computed tomography (CT), and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. US has a primary role in detecting and characterizing endometrial and adnexal pathology. CT is one of the primary modalities in staging malignancy and detecting recurrence. MR imaging is characterized by superior contrast resolution and specificity. This article reviews the role of radiologic imaging for the characterization of gynecologic masses and for staging, planning, and monitoring treatment, as well as for the assessment of tumor recurrence of the most common gynecologic malignancies.

Diabetes revealed: multisystem danger

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this article is to review the role of diagnostic imaging in the evaluation of women with diabetes.

CONCLUSION

Diabetic patients present a challenging population for the performance of various imaging studies and special considerations need to be made to obtain adequate studies. Imaging plays a significant role in assessing the multisystem morbidity of diabetes. Furthermore, diabetes in women may have some unique features and consequences and imaging studies can aid in the correct management of these patients.