Progress of MRI in predicting the circumferential resection margin of rectal cancer: A narrative review

Rectal cancer (RC) is the third most frequently diagnosed cancer worldwide, and the status of its circumferential resection margin (CRM) is of paramount significance for treatment strategies and prognosis. CRM involvement is defined as tumor touching or within 1 mm from the outermost part of tumor or outer border of the mesorectal or lymph node deposits to the resection margin. The incidence of involved CRM varied from 5.4 % to 36 %, which may associate with an in consistent definition of CRM, the quality of surgeries, and the different examination modalities. Although T and N status are essential factors in determining whether a patient should receive neoadjuvant therapy before surgery, CRM status is a powerful predictor of local and distant recurrence as well as survival rate. This review explores the significance of CRM, the various assessment methods, and the role of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and artificial intelligence-based MRI in predicting CRM status. MRI showed potential advantage in predicting CRM status with a high sensitivity and specificity compared to computed tomography (CT). We also discuss MRI advancements in RC imaging, including conventional MRI with body coil, high-resolution MRI with phased-array coil, and endorectal MRI. Along with a discussion of artificial intelligence-based MRI techniques to predict the CRM status of RCs before and after treatments.