Histopathological evidence in support of the association of elevated proton spin-lattice relaxation times with the malignant state.
The pulsed nuclear magnetic resonance technique was explored for its potential diagnostic value in human cancer. Measurements of proton spin-lattice relaxation times (T1) of cellular water protons of normal and malignant esophageal tissues showed elevated T1 values in the latter. In some cases, tissues which appeared normal on gross examination assumed as uninvolved tissues had T1 values higher than the other grossly uninvolved tissues and often closer to the T1 of the corresponding tumor tissue. A histopathological study of the assumed uninvolved areas also studied for the T1 values was therefore undertaken. A preliminary study demonstrated the presence of malignant cell groups or clusters in some of the uninvolved samples with higher T1 compared to the true uninvolved tissues, which had a normal histological picture and low T1 values. This observation has brought out the importance of histopathological studies in addition to relaxation studies to comprehend contributory factors to relaxation. Secondly, it lends support to the thesis of elevated T1 values being characteristics of the malignant state.
D001706:Biopsy; D004938:Esophageal Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy / Q000379:methods*