- ISSN: 1573-4056
- E-ISSN: 1875-6603
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oa Standardization of Breast Dynamic Contrast-enhanced MRI Signal with Application to the Assessment of Background Parenchymal Enhancement Rate
- Source: Current Medical Imaging, Volume 20, Issue 1, Jan 2024, E060323214364
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- 09 May 2022
- 26 Dec 2022
- 01 Jan 2024
Abstract
There is currently no clinically accepted method for quantifying background parenchymal enhancement (BPE), though a sensitive method might allow individualized risk management based on the response to cancer-preventative hormonal therapy.
The objective of this pilot study is to demonstrate the utility of linear modeling of standardized dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI (DCEMRI) signal for quantifying changes in BPE rates.
On a retrospective database search, 14 women with DCEMRI examinations pre- and post-treatment with tamoxifen were identified. DCEMRI signal was averaged over the parenchymal ROIs to obtain time-dependent signal curves S(t). The gradient echo signal equation was used to standardize scale S(t) to values of FA = 10° and TR = 5.5 ms, and obtain the standardized DCE-MRI signal Sp(t). Relative signal enhancement 
was calculated from Sp, and the reference tissue method for T1 calculation was used to standardize to gadodiamide as the contrast agent, obtaining . in the first 6 minutes post-contrast administration was fit to a linear model with the slope α denoting the standardized rate relative BPE.
Changes in α were not found to be significantly correlated with the average duration of tamoxifen treatment, age at the initiation of preventative treatment, or pre-treatment BIRADS breast density category. The average change in α showed a large effect size of -1.12, significantly higher than -0.86 observed without signal standardization (p < 0.01).
Linear modeling of BPE in standardized DCEMRI can provide quantitative measurements of BPE rates, improving sensitivity to changes due to tamoxifen treatment.
