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Updated: Jul 10, 2025

A Multicenter MRI Protocol for the Evaluation and Quantification of Deep Vein Thrombosis
Published on: June 2, 2015
Extracellular contrast agent-enhanced MRI is as effective as gadoxetate disodium-enhanced MRI for predicting
Liuji Sheng1, Hong Wei1, Ting Yang1
1Department of Radiology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan, China; Functional and Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
Purpose:
To compare the performances of gadoxetate disodium-enhanced MRI (EOB-MRI) and extracellular contrast agent-enhanced MRI (ECA-MRI) for predicting microvascular invasion (MVI) in HCC.
Materials And Methods:
From November 2009 to December 2021, consecutive HCC patients who underwent preoperative contrast-enhanced MRI were retrospectively enrolled into either an ECA-MRI or EOB-MRI cohort. In the ECA-MRI cohort, a preoperative MVI score was constructed in the training dataset using a logistic regression model that evaluated pathological type. In a propensity score-matched testing dataset of the ECA-MRI cohort, the MVI score was validated and compared with a previously proposed EOB-MRI-based MVI score calculated in the EOB-MRI cohort. Time-to-early recurrence survival was evaluated by the Kaplan-Meier method with the log-rank test.
Results:
A total of 536 patients were included (478 men; 53 years, interquartile range, 46-62 years), 322 (60.1 %) with pathologically confirmed MVI. Based on the training dataset, independent variables associated with MVI included serum alpha-fetoprotein > 400 ng/ml (odds ratio [OR] = 2.3), infiltrative appearance (OR = 4.9), internal artery (OR = 2.5) and nodule-in-nodule architecture (OR = 2.4), which were incorporated into the ECA-MRI-based MVI score. The testing dataset AUC of the ECA-MRI score was 0.720, which was comparable to that of the EOB-MRI-based MVI score (AUC = 0.721; P =.99). Patients from either the ECA-MRI or the EOB-MRI cohort with model-predicted MVI had significantly shorter time-to-early recurrence than those without MVI (P <.001).
Conclusion:
Based on the preoperative serum alpha-fetoprotein and three MRI features, ECA-MRI demonstrated comparable performance to EOB-MRI for predicting MVI in HCC.

