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. 2018 Jun 22;13(6):e0199636.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0199636. eCollection 2018.

Diagnostic performance of diffusion-weighted imaging for prostate cancer: Peripheral zone versus transition zone

Hakmin Lee  1 , Sung Il Hwang  2   3 , Hak Jong Lee  2   3 , Seok-Soo Byun  1   4 , Sang Eun Lee  1   4 , Sung Kyu Hong  1   4
Affiliations

Diagnostic performance of diffusion-weighted imaging for prostate cancer: Peripheral zone versus transition zone

Hakmin Lee et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

Objectives: Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) has been shown to be an important component of multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging (mpMRI). We compared performance of DWI for detection of prostate cancer (PCa) in peripheral zone (PZ) and transition zone (TZ) of prostate.

Materials and methods: We reviewed data of 460 subjects who underwent preoperative 3.0-Tesla mpMRI and subsequently radical prostatectomy. Level of suspicion for PCa was graded using 5-grade Likert-scale from DWI. Topographic analyses were performed for location of tumor foci at each surgical specimen. Among those with DWI grade ≥ III, we analyzed concordance rate on the location of radiologic and pathologic index lesions between DWI and surgical specimens.

Results: Among 460 patients, 351 (76.3%) patients showed suspicious DWI lesions (57.5% in PZ, 42.5% in TZ). Multivariates regression analyses revealed significant associations between high DWI grade and adverse pathologic outcomes including pathologic stage, Gleason score, tumor volume and extracapsular extension (all p < 0.05). Overall concordance rates between DWI and surgical specimen were 75.8%, significantly higher in PZ than TZ (82.2% vs. 67.1% p = 0.002). Such concordance rate showed a positive linear association with increase in DWI grading (p < 0.001). Among 109 patients with DWI grade I-II, 28 (25.7%) harbored high grade disease (pathologic Gleason score ≥ 4 + 3).

Conclusions: DWI detects tumors in PZ of prostate more accurately than those in TZ. Such accuracy of DWI was shown to be more evident with higher DWI grade. Meanwhile, a negative DWI did not guarantee absence of high grade PCa.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. The examples of diffusion weighted images according to the Likert score; (A) grade III; (B) grade IV; (C) grade V.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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