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Updated: Feb 8, 2026
Gene Regulation and Targeted Therapy in Gastric Cancer Peritoneal Metastasis: Radiological Findings from Dual Energy CT and PET/CT
Published on: January 22, 2018
Application of spectral CT imaging in evaluating lymph node metastasis in patients with gastric cancers: initial
Zhuping Zhou1, Yu Liu1, Kui Meng2
11 Department of Radiology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, The Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing, PR China.
Background:
Traditional computed tomography (CT) can predict the lymph node metastasis of gastric cancers with moderate accuracy; however, investigation of spectral CT imaging in this field is still limited.
Purpose:
To explore the application of spectral CT imaging in evaluating lymph node metastasis in patients with gastric cancers.
Material And Methods:
Twenty-four patients with gastric cancers prospectively underwent spectral CT imaging in the arterial phase. The short and long diameters, material concentrations, and CT values were measured and compared between lymph nodes with and without metastasis. The diagnostic performance of the CT index in identifying metastatic lymph nodes was analyzed with receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis.
Results:
A total of 102 lymph nodes (77 metastatic, 25 non-metastatic) were detected on spectral CT imaging with the reference of postoperative pathologic exanimation. The short and long diameters, water/fat concentrations, CT value, and ratio between lymph nodes vs. tumors of metastatic lymph nodes were significantly higher than those of non-metastatic ones (all P < 0.05). With a cut-off of 0.785, the CT ratio of lymph node/tumor on 70-keV monochromatic images yielded an accuracy of 81.4% in differentiating lymph nodes with and without metastasis.
Conclusion:
Spectral CT imaging detects lymph nodes more clearly, and the CT ratio of lymph node/tumor on 70-keV monochromatic images holds great potential in differentiating lymph nodes with and without metastasis, which is more accurate than size measurement.
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