Advances in oncologic imaging

Over the past two decades, there has been an increased reliance on radiologic imaging to diagnose and stage malignancies. This increased reliance on imaging has occurred because the quality of imaging has improved markedly. Currently, modalities such as MRI and CT allow the radiologist to obtain highly detailed images of the human body with a resolution of less than 1mm. More recently, researchers have shifted their focus from anatomic imaging to functional imaging. This burgeoning field of radiology strives to provide quantitative information regarding the behavior of tumors (or other pathology) to deliver patients and clinicians with prognostic information regarding the disease process. The purpose of this article is to describe the recent advances in pediatric oncologic imaging.