Medicinski Podmladak (Jan 2019)
The importance of diffusion weighted magnetic resonance imaging in differentiation of malignant and benign ovarian lesions
Abstract
Introduction: Ovarian cancer is the leading cause of mortality among all female genital cancers. However, there is no successful screening program for ovarian cancer detection. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has an important role in diagnostics of adnexal tumors in female patients. The use of diffusion weighted MRI (DWI) is getting more significant to help differentiate benign from malignant ovarian lesions. Aim: Evaluation of apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values in differentiation between benign and malignant ovarian lesions; correlation of ovarian and uterus ADC values in groups of female patients with and without ovarian lesions. Material and methods: the research has been conducted between 2014 and 2017, as a retrospective clinical study at Radiology Department of Clinical Center of Vojvodina in Novi Sad. Number of 45 female patients have been selected and classified into three groups, one with benign ovarian lesions, one with malignant ovarian lesions and one group of patients with no ovarian lesions. The ADC value has been measured for all the patients at three different localizations within the lesion, while patients with no lesions had their normal ovarian tissue measured. The ADC value has also been measured on the normal myometrium of each patient's uterus. Results: the analysis and comparison of ADC values between the three groups shows statistically significant difference of values between patients with malignant lesions and those with benign or no lesions at all. Conclusion: the ADC value has been recognized as a relevant biomarker of malignant ovarian lesions during MRI examination.
