Dissected sentinel lymph nodes of breast cancer patients: characterization with high-spatial-resolution 7-T MR...

To investigate the association of 7-T magnetic resonance (MR) imaging characteristics with metastatic nodal invasion, determined with histopathologic assessment in dissected sentinel lymph nodes of breast cancer patients.

Institutional review board approval and informed consent were obtained. From November 2008 to July 2010, 114 dissected lymph nodes from 33 women (mean age, 57 years; range, 31-80 years) with breast cancer were included. For morphological analysis, three-dimensional (3D) T1-weighted fat-suppressed fast field- (gradient-) echo (isotropic resolution, 180 μm) MR was performed; 3D nodal dimensions, maximum cortical thickness, and presence of fatty hilum were noted. For quantitative parametric analysis, two-dimensional T1-weighted and 3D T2-, T2*-, and diffusion-weighted images were acquired. Statistical analysis included generalized estimating equations (GEEs), forward and backward stepwise regression analyses, and calculation of positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV).

Of 114 nodes, 26 (23%) were malignant. Morphological criteria showed weak discriminatory power: A fatty center was absent in 35% of malignant nodes and 30% of benign nodes (P = .9). Nodal volume and length-width ratio were not significantly different (P = .11 and .75, respectively). Cortical thickness (threshold level, 3 mm; P = .02) showed 91% NPV for malignancy and 95% NPV for presence of macrometastases. Quantitative parametric analyses showed comparable mean T1, T2, and T2* relaxation time constants and apparent diffusion coefficient for metastatic and benign nodes: 991 msec, 30 msec, and 18 msec and 0.17 mm²/sec versus 1035 msec (P = .14), 31 msec (P = .001; not significant after GEE), and 15 msec (P = .002) and 0.20 mm²/sec (P = .38), respectively. Mean T2* alone offered an additive discriminatory effect for identification of metastatic nodes. Consistent with the notion of pannodal changes accompanying tumor infiltration, mean T2* differed significantly even if only micrometastases were present. The interindividual differences were small, precluding easy clinical implementation.

Morphological criteria showed poor discriminatory power, even with very-high-spatial-resolution imaging. T2* quantification allowed identification of metastatic nodal invasion.