title: [Predictive value of tumor vessel density from enhanced spiral CT scan for lymph node and distant metastasis of colorectal cancer].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To test whether the tumor vessel density (TVD) from the enhanced spiral CT can preoperatively predict nodal status and distant metastasis of colorectal cancer.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty cases of colorectal cancer patients who received surgical treatment were included in this study. The three dimensional tumor vessels were reconstructed by an enhanced CT 64-slice spiral CT and its AW4.4 image processing platform. The TVD was measured by the 1000 high-resolution color graphics pathological analysis system. The TVD level was compared between different tumor size, classification, and TNM stage. The postoperative pathological staging was taken as golden standard.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy for direct prediction of lymph node metastasis by the enhanced CT 64-slice spiral CT was 74.1%(20/27), 53.8%(7/13) and 67.5%(27/40) respectively. The TVD from the reconstructed three dimensional tumor vessels in the group with lymph node metastasis was significantly higher than that without metastasis(0.070±0.046 vs. 0.037±0.013, P<0.05). The TVD in the distant metastasis group was significantly higher than that without distant metastasis (0.130±0.032 vs. 0.049±0.030, P<0.01). No difference of TVD was found between different tumor size, invasion depth, and differentiation type.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  TVD level from the reconstructed three dimensional tumor vessels can indicate lymph node and distant metastasis of colorectal cancer.
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, China-Japan Union Hospital, Jilin University, Changchun 130033, China. sunlibo0431@sina.com.
authors.forename: Yang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Jing
authors.forename: Li-Bo
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: Zhen-Bo
authors.initials: ZB
authors.lastname: Shu
authors.forename: Yong-Chao
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Da-Yong
authors.initials: DY
authors.lastname: Ding
authors.forename: Hui-Mao
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Li-Hua
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Bo
mesh_terms: D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms; D006801:Humans; D008198:Lymph Nodes; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D036542:Tomography, Spiral Computed