Evaluation of Apparent Diffusion Coefficient Repeatability and Reproducibility for Preclinical MRIs Using Standardized Procedures and a Diffusion-Weighted Imaging Phantom
Dariya Malyarenko,
Ghoncheh Amouzandeh,
Stephen Pickup,
Rong Zhou,
Henry Charles Manning,
Seth T. Gammon,
Kooresh I. Shoghi,
James D. Quirk,
Renuka Sriram,
Peder Larson,
Michael T. Lewis,
Robia G. Pautler,
Paul E. Kinahan,
Mark Muzi,
Thomas L. Chenevert
Affiliations
Dariya Malyarenko
Department of Radiology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
Ghoncheh Amouzandeh
Department of Radiology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
Stephen Pickup
Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
Rong Zhou
Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
Henry Charles Manning
Department of Cancer Systems Imaging, The University of Texas MDACC, Houston, TX 77030, USA
Seth T. Gammon
Department of Cancer Systems Imaging, The University of Texas MDACC, Houston, TX 77030, USA
Kooresh I. Shoghi
Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
James D. Quirk
Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
Renuka Sriram
UCSF Department of Radiology & Biomedical Imaging, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
Peder Larson
UCSF Department of Radiology & Biomedical Imaging, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
Michael T. Lewis
Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
Robia G. Pautler
Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
Paul E. Kinahan
Department of Radiology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
Mark Muzi
Department of Radiology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
Thomas L. Chenevert
Department of Radiology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
Relevant to co-clinical trials, the goal of this work was to assess repeatability, reproducibility, and bias of the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) for preclinical MRIs using standardized procedures for comparison to performance of clinical MRIs. A temperature-controlled phantom provided an absolute reference standard to measure spatial uniformity of these performance metrics. Seven institutions participated in the study, wherein diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) data were acquired over multiple days on 10 preclinical scanners, from 3 vendors, at 6 field strengths. Centralized versus site-based analysis was compared to illustrate incremental variance due to processing workflow. At magnet isocenter, short-term (intra-exam) and long-term (multiday) repeatability were excellent at within-system coefficient of variance, wCV [±CI] = 0.73% [0.54%, 1.12%] and 1.26% [0.94%, 1.89%], respectively. The cross-system reproducibility coefficient, RDC [±CI] = 0.188 [0.129, 0.343] µm2/ms, corresponded to 17% [12%, 31%] relative to the reference standard. Absolute bias at isocenter was low (within 4%) for 8 of 10 systems, whereas two high-bias (>10%) scanners were primary contributors to the relatively high RDC. Significant additional variance (>2%) due to site-specific analysis was observed for 2 of 10 systems. Base-level technical bias, repeatability, reproducibility, and spatial uniformity patterns were consistent with human MRIs (scaled for bore size). Well-calibrated preclinical MRI systems are capable of highly repeatable and reproducible ADC measurements.