Apparent diffusion coefficient characteristics of various adrenal tumors

Area of Science:

• Radiology
• Oncology
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Adrenal tumors require accurate differentiation for appropriate clinical management.
• Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) offers a non-invasive method to assess tissue characteristics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) using apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) measurements in differentiating adrenal tumors.
• To compare three distinct ADC measurement methods: entire tumor, solid region, and minimum ADC.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of 52 patients with pathologically proven adrenal tumors who underwent MRI with DWI.
• Measurement of entire ADC, solid ADC, and minimum ADC, along with the non-solid to entire tumor area ratio.
• Comparison of these parameters between benign and malignant adrenal tumor groups.

Main Results:

• The average entire ADC was significantly higher in the benign group (1.35 ± 0.38 × 10(-3) mm2/s) compared to the malignant group (1.01 ± 0.17 × 10(-3) mm2/s).
• No significant differences were observed in the average solid ADC, minimum ADC, or the non-solid to entire tumor area ratio between benign and malignant groups.

Conclusions:

• Higher entire ADC values in benign adrenal tumors may be attributed to necrosis, hemorrhage, or degeneration.
• ADC measurement of the solid region within adrenal tumors is not a reliable method for differentiating benign from malignant lesions.