Rectal cancer: MR imaging in local staging--is gadolinium-based contrast material helpful?
OBJECTIVE
To determine retrospectively whether addition of gadolinium-enhanced T1-weighted magnetic resonance (MR) sequence to T2-weighted turbo spin-echo (SE) MR imaging is valuable for preoperative assessment of T stage and circumferential resection margin in patients with primary rectal cancer.


METHODS
Local institutional review board approved study and waived informed patient consent. Eighty-three patients with operable primary rectal cancer underwent preoperative MR imaging. Retrospectively, two observers independently scored T2-weighted turbo SE MR images and, in a second reading, T2-weighted images combined with gadolinium-enhanced T1-weighted turbo SE MR images for tumor penetration through rectal wall and tumor extension into mesorectal fascia. A confidence level scoring system was used, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were generated. Histologic findings were standard of reference. Difference in performance of T2-weighted and combined T2-weighted plus gadolinium-enhanced T1-weighted sequences was analyzed by comparing corresponding areas under ROC curves (A(z)) for each observer. Interobserver agreement was calculated by using linear weighted kappa statistics.


RESULTS
Addition of contrast-enhanced T1-weighted to T2-weighted MR imaging did not significantly improve diagnostic accuracy for prediction of tumor penetration through rectal wall (A(z) of T2-weighted vs T2-weighted plus T1-weighted images for observer 1, 0.740 vs 0.764; observer 2, 0.856 vs 0.768) and tumor extension into mesorectal fascia (A(z) for observer 1, 0.962 vs 0.902; observer 2, 0.902 vs 0.911). Diagnostic performance (A(z)) of MR and interobserver agreement were high for prediction of tumor extension into mesorectal fascia (kappa = 0.61, 0.74) but only moderate for penetration through rectal wall (kappa = 0.47, 0.45).


CONCLUSIONS
Gadolinium-enhanced MR sequences did not improve diagnostic accuracy for assessment of tumor penetration through rectal wall and tumor extension into mesorectal fascia.
Vliegen
Roy F A
RF
Department of Radiology, University Hospital of Maastricht, P. Debyelaan 25, 6202 AZ Maastricht, The Netherlands. rvli@rdia.azm.nl
Beets
Geerard L
GL
von Meyenfeldt
Maarten F
MF
Kessels
Alfons G H
AG
Lemaire
Etienne E M T
EE
van Engelshoven
Jos M A
JM
Beets-Tan
Regina G H
RG
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003287:Contrast Media; D005260:Female; D019786:Gadolinium DTPA; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D012372:ROC Curve; D012004:Rectal Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
D003287:Contrast Media; D019786:Gadolinium DTPA