| Volumetric CT |
tumor volume |
volume of tumor in mm3
|
Provides data to immediately assess tumor burden/non-specific |
Only requires routinely acquired clinical data/time consuming |
high spatial resolution |
standard of care software packages; some user skill |
| DCE-CT |
tumor enhancement |
qualitative or semiquantitative assessment of perfusion/permeability |
Insight into tumor vascular properties/qualitative in nature, additional radiation dose |
Easy to perform in the clinical setting/does not allow for quantitative interpretation |
high spatial resolution, modest temporal resolution |
standard of care software packages |
| DCE-CT |
vessel perfusion and permeability |
blood flow in units of mL(blood)/mL(tissue)/min and permeability surface area product in unit of mL/s |
Knowledge of tumor vascular properties/mixed measure of two vascular characteristics, additional radiation dose |
Increased level of rigor/requires local expertise and proper software to execute properly |
high temporal resolution, arterial input function |
specialized software; close interaction with imaging core |
| DCE-CT |
volume fractions |
fraction of voxel that is (e.g.) blood or extravascular extracellular space |
Knowledge of intra-tumoral make-up/Unproven clinical value, additional radiation dose |
Increased level of rigor/requires local expertise and proper software to execute properly |
high temporal resolution, arterial input function |
specialized software; close interaction with imaging core |
| DCE-MRI |
tumor enhancement |
qualitative or semiquantitative assessment of perfusion/permeability |
Insight into tumor vascular properties/qualitative or semiquantitative in nature |
Easy to perform in the clinical setting/does not allow for quantitative interpretation |
does not require high temporal resolution, moderate to high spatial resolution |
standard of care software packages |
| DCE-MRI |
vessel perfusion and permeability |
contrast agent transfer rate constant in units of min-1 containing both blood flow in units of mL(100 mL tissue)-1min-1 and permeability surface area product in unit of min-1
|
quantitative measure of tumor vascular properties/accuracy and precision prone to variations in data acquisition and analysis |
Increased level of rigor in quantitative analysis/requires local or central expertise and proper software to execute properly |
determination of pre-contrast T1 and arterial input function, high temporal resolution |
specialized software (in-house, commercial, or publicly available); close interaction with imaging scientists |
| DCE-MRI |
volume fractions |
fraction of voxel that is (e.g.) blood or extravascular extracellular space |
quantitative measure of intra-tumoral make-up/accuracy and precision prone to variations in data acquisition and analysis |
Increased level of rigor in quantitative analysis/requires local or central expertise and proper software to execute properly |
determination of pre-contrast T1 and arterial input function, high temporal resolution |
specialized software (in-house, commercial, or publicly available); close interaction with imaging scientists |
| DW-MRI |
apparent diffusion coefficient |
quantitative assessment of cell density |
Estimates of cellularity/non-specific |
Straightforward to implement in clinical settings/ADC quantification can be dependent on selection of diffusion weightings |
multiple image sets with different diffusion weightings |
standard of care software packages or specialized software (in-house, commercial, or publicly available) |
| FDG-PET |
accumulation of tracer |
qualitative assessment of glucose utilization |
Well understood interpretation in context of cancer/difficult to interpret for organs with high background |
Easy to perform in clinical setting/quantification issues |
brief scan 60 minutes post injection |
standard of care software packages |
| FDG-PET |
SUV |
semi-quantitative assessment of glucose utilization |
Provides rough estimate of glucose utilization/unclear clinical utility |
Easy to perform/lacks rigor and meaning |
brief scan 60 minutes post injection |
standard of care software packages; some user skill |
| FDG-PET |
kinetic analysis |
quantitative assessment of delivery, retention, and utilization of glucose |
Well-defined interpretation/unclear clinical utility |
Increased level of rigor/requires local expertise and proper software to execute properly |
dynamic acquisition over the uptake time (∼60 min) |
specialized software; close interaction with imaging core |
| FLT-PET |
accumulation of tracer |
qualitative assessment of cell proliferation |
Provides rough estimate of proliferation/difficult to interpret for certain tumors |
Easy to perform in clinical setting/quantification issues |
brief scan 60 minutes post injection |
standard of care software packages |
| FLT-PET |
SUV |
semi-quantitative assessment of cell proliferation |
Provides rough estimate of thymidine kinase activity/unclear clinical utility |
Easy to perform/lacks rigor and meaning |
brief scan 60 minutes post injection |
standard of care software packages; some user skill |
| FLT-PET |
kinetic analysis |
quantitative assessment of delivery, retention, and utilization of cell proliferation |
Well-defined interpretation/unclear clinical utility |
Increased level of rigor/requires local expertise and proper software to execute properly |
dynamic acquisition over the uptake time (∼60 min) |
specialized software; close interaction with imaging core |
