[Experimental and clinical approaches to lymph node imaging].
Exact assessment of lymph nodes is crucial to tumor staging, choice of therapy and in predicting the outcome. Although imaging plays a central role in the evaluation of lymph nodes, current imaging methods have low sensitivity and specificity primarily because they rely on insensitive morphological criteria or because they have low special resolution. Because of this diagnostic dilemma invasive, expansive and uncomfortable diagnostic techniques and/or unnecessary aggressive therapies are still in use. This brief overview is intended to summarize current imaging strategies and to give an outlook on experimental and clinical strategies in lymph node imaging in cancer.
Center of Molecular Imaging Research, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA. wunderba@helix.mgh.harvard.edu
P
P
Wunderbaldinger
R
R
Weissleder
D000818:Animals; D003952:Diagnostic Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods*; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000473:pathology*; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis / Q000473:pathology*; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity