Application of whole-body MRI to detect the recurrence of lung cancer

Although some therapeutics provide an opportunity for cure, recurrence is a major obstacle to achieve a complete remission for lung cancers. Therefore, precise assessment of lung cancers has been a task with challenge. In recent years, integration of positron emission tomography and computed tomography (PET-CT) and whole-body magnetic resonance imaging (WB-MRI) have been introduced as an alternative to standard multimodality imaging strategies and are now increasingly applied to various malignancies. However, there is little information on the surveillance capability of WB-MRI in patients with lung cancers. We aimed to investigate the clinical potential of WB-MRI as a novel surveillance modality after curative treatments for lung cancers, comparing it with PET-CT. Sixty two consecutive patients with lung malignancy who underwent both WB-MRI and PET-CT were selected to assess the recurrent malignant lesions. The clinical data including radiologic and pathologic findings were collected and analyzed retrospectively. On each lymph node station, the ability of WB-MRI to detect malignant lesions significantly correlated with that of PET-CT (γ=0.86; P<.01). The correlation coefficient ranged from 0.999 to 1 for assessing distant metastases from lung cancers by two modalities (P<.01). Based on the pathologic confirmation, both modalities showed an equivalent diagnostic accuracy (PET-CT: sensitivity 85.71%, specificity 47.27% versus WB-MRI: sensitivity 85.71%, specificity 56.25%). This study demonstrates the clinical potential of WB-MRI, together with PET-CT, as a novel surveillance modality for lung cancers after curative treatments.