Diagnostics (Apr 2021)

Radiomics and Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Rectal Cancer: From Engineering to Clinical Practice

  • Francesca Coppola,
  • Valentina Giannini,
  • Michela Gabelloni,
  • Jovana Panic,
  • Arianna Defeudis,
  • Silvia Lo Monaco,
  • Arrigo Cattabriga,
  • Maria Adriana Cocozza,
  • Luigi Vincenzo Pastore,
  • Michela Polici,
  • Damiano Caruso,
  • Andrea Laghi,
  • Daniele Regge,
  • Emanuele Neri,
  • Rita Golfieri,
  • Lorenzo Faggioni

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics11050756
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 11, no. 5
p. 756

Abstract

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While cross-sectional imaging has seen continuous progress and plays an undiscussed pivotal role in the diagnostic management and treatment planning of patients with rectal cancer, a largely unmet need remains for improved staging accuracy, assessment of treatment response and prediction of individual patient outcome. Moreover, the increasing availability of target therapies has called for developing reliable diagnostic tools for identifying potential responders and optimizing overall treatment strategy on a personalized basis. Radiomics has emerged as a promising, still fully evolving research topic, which could harness the power of modern computer technology to generate quantitative information from imaging datasets based on advanced data-driven biomathematical models, potentially providing an added value to conventional imaging for improved patient management. The present study aimed to illustrate the contribution that current radiomics methods applied to magnetic resonance imaging can offer to managing patients with rectal cancer.

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