[Behavior of T1 relaxation time in normal and neoplastic pulmonary tissue. An in vitro study]

The aim of the study was to look for a difference between normal and neoplastic lung tissue by means of Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy in vitro. A 2.1 Tesla intensity spectrometer was used. From 23 pneumonectomized patients, two samples from the lung were taken immediately after surgery: one from the center of the neoplasm, one from the healthy surrounding tissue; on each of them T1 relaxation time was measured. Twenty patients out of 23 had a higher T1 relaxation time in the pathologic tissue than in the healthy surrounding tissue; only in 3 cases the T1 of neoplastic tissue was lower than that of the healthy tissue. A correlation was also sought between the T1 value and the histologic type of the neoplasm. In epidermoid carcinoma, the T1 relaxation time increased with the malignity of the neoplasm.