Accuracy of MRI in pretreatment lymph node assessment in gynecological malignancies

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Saira Naz Sufian, Imrana Masroor, Waseem Mirza, Zainab Hussain, Saima Hafeez and Zafar Sajjad

The Aga Khan University Hospital Karachi, Pakistan

: J Diagn Tech Biomed Anal

Abstract

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Objective: To determine the accuracy of MRI in detection of metastasis in pelvic and para-aortic lymph nodes from different gynecological malignancies. Place of study: Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi Pakistan. Duration of study: From January 2011 to December 2012. Materials & Methods: It was a retrospective cross sectional analytic study. A sample of 48 women, age range between 20-79 years, fulfilling inclusion criteria were included. All patients had histopathologically proven gynecological malignancies including cervix, endometrium or ovaries and presented for a pretreatment MRI to our radiology department. Results: MRI is 100% sensitive and has 100 % positive predictive value to detect lymph node metastasis in lymph nodes with spiculated margins and it is 100 % sensitive and has 75 % positive predictive value to detect lymph node metastasis in a lymph node with lobulated margins. The sensitivity and positive predictive value of MRI to detect heterogeneous nodal enhancement were 100 % and 75 % respectively. Conclusion: Our study results reinforce that MRI should be used as a modality of choice in the pretreatment assessment of lymph node in proven gynaecological malignancies in order to determine the line of patient’s management, distinguishing surgical from non –surgical cases.

Biography

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Saira Naz Sufian is an Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology at The Aga Khan University Hospital. She specializes in the treatment of breast and gynecological cancers. Her research interests include Evaluation of common risk factors related with Breast Carcinoma in females.

E-Mail: saira.naz@aku.edu