Novel imaging techniques as response biomarkers in cervical cancer

The use of novel imaging techniques that have the ability to evaluate tumour biology and function shows a great deal of promise in providing early surrogate biomarkers of response to therapy which may allow for individualised or patient-specific regimes. This would have considerable clinical benefit in allowing for a treatment regimen tailored accordingly to meet the expected response, thereby reducing morbidity. Several of these imaging modalities such as dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI (DCE-MRI), diffusion-weighted MRI (DW-MRI), MR spectroscopy (MRS) and fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) are now being introduced into the field of gynaecological oncology, with the majority of work being performed on cervical tumours. This review examines the use of these functional imaging techniques as response biomarkers in cervical cancer.