Can MRI rule out bladder and rectal invasion in cervical cancer to help select patients for limited EUA?

Cervical tumors

Imaging the cervix for benign and malignant disease can be achieved using transvaginal ultrasound, computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging, and 18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography. The best established role of imaging is in cervical carcinoma where magnetic resonance imaging, CT and increasingly positron emission tomography-CT are the most frequently used imaging modalities. These have a role in staging, treatment selection, recurrent disease, and imaging complications of treatment. Histopathological diagnosis of cervical disorders cannot be made on the basis of imaging alone but certain imaging features may provide an indication as to the underlying diagnosis. We describe the imaging features of some malignant tumor subtypes in which a preoperative diagnosis may alter management. Benign lesions of the cervix are usually detected incidentally or during investigations for dysfunctional vaginal bleeding. We describe the imaging features of the commonly encountered benign cervical lesions.

Staging of uterine cervical cancer with MRI: guidelines of the European Society of Urogenital Radiology

OBJECTIVE

To design clear guidelines for the staging and follow-up of patients with uterine cervical cancer, and to provide the radiologist with a framework for use in multidisciplinary conferences.

METHODS

Guidelines for uterine cervical cancer staging and follow-up were defined by the female imaging subcommittee of the ESUR (European Society of Urogenital Radiology) based on the expert consensus of imaging protocols of 11 leading institutions and a critical review of the literature.

RESULTS

The results indicated that high field Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) should include at least two T2-weighted sequences in sagittal, axial oblique or coronal oblique orientation (short and long axis of the uterine cervix) of the pelvic content. Axial T1-weighted sequence is useful to detect suspicious pelvic and abdominal lymph nodes, and images from symphysis to the left renal vein are required. The intravenous administration of Gadolinium-chelates is optional but is often required for small lesions (<2 cm) and for follow-up after treatment. Diffusion-weighted sequences are optional but are recommended to help evaluate lymph nodes and to detect a residual lesion after chemoradiotherapy.

CONCLUSIONS

Expert consensus and literature review lead to an optimized MRI protocol to stage uterine cervical cancer. MRI is the imaging modality of choice for preoperative staging and follow-up in patients with uterine cervical cancer.

Imaging of endometrial and cervical cancer

In this article we review the ever increasing role of imaging in endometrial and cervical cancer. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has emerged as the most widely used technique in the management of women with gynaecological cancer. In endometrial cancer, MRI is reliable in identifying myometrial and cervical invasion and extra-uterine disease, thereby informing preoperative surgical planning. In cervical cancer, MRI plays a crucial role in distinguishing early from advanced disease, thereby stratifying patients for surgery and chemoradiation. MRI is also valuable in assessing proximal extension of cervical tumours in young women with early stage disease for feasibility of fertility preserving surgery. In both cancers, imaging is used for diagnosing nodal metastases, detection of recurrence, and dealing with complications of both the disease and treatment.

Prognostic significance of MRI-detected bladder muscle and/or serosal invasion in patients with cervical cancer treated with radiotherapy

In cervical cancer, the prognostic significance of bladder wall invasion on MRI without pathological evidence of mucosal invasion is not known. From 454 consecutive patients with cervical cancer who were treated with radiation, we reviewed images and analysed the outcome of 92 patients with the Federation of International Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage IIIB-IVA. We analysed the patients in three groups, normal, wall (muscle and/or serosal) invasion and mucosal invasion, according to the findings on the MRI. Kaplan-Meier life table analysis and the log-rank test were used to assess the survival rates and differences according to prognostic factors. MRI detected abnormalities in the bladder wall in 42 patients (45.6%): wall invasion in 24 and mucosal invasion in 18. 5 of 18 patients, suspected on MRI to have mucosal invasion, showed no pathological evidence of mucosal invasion. Median follow-up period was 34 months. 3-year cause-specific survival (CSS) in the normal group compared with the wall invasion group was 76.2% vs 71.4% (p = 0.48). 3-year CSS for the wall invasion group compared with the mucosal invasion group was 71.4% vs 54.3% (p = 0.04). Mucosal invasion on MRI (p = 0.03) and concurrent chemoradiotherapy (p = 0.01) was significant for CSS. The prognosis for patients with cervical cancer with evidence of muscle and/or serosal invasion of the bladder on MRI may not differ from that for patients without abnormality on MRI. In patients with the MRI finding of bladder mucosal invasion, further studies should be conducted regarding the role of cystoscopy to determine the need for pathological confirmation.

MRI and PET scans for primary staging and detection of cervical cancer recurrence

Worldwide, cervical cancer is the second most common malignancy in women, and is a major cause of morbidity and mortality. Accurate tumor staging is essential for optimal treatment planning and prognosis. Cervical cancer is staged by clinical examination according to the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics staging system. However, clinical staging has inherent deficiencies in evaluating several parameters that are critical for treatment planning. It is now widely accepted that cross-sectional imaging, and in particular MRI, has an important role to play in the staging of these tumors. MRI is an excellent modality for depicting invasive cervical cancer: it can provide objective measurement of tumor size and provides a high negative predictive value for parametrial invasion and stage IVA disease. MRI and positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) play key roles in identifying recurrent disease. PET/CT is also useful in detecting nodal and distant metastases and in radiotherapy planning. Diffusion-weighted MRI is an emerging imaging technique that is currently being evaluated for the detection of primary and recurrent disease and in the assessment of treatment response.

Magnetic resonance imaging in gynecological oncology

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has become an indispensable tool in the assessment of malignant disease. With increasingly sophisticated systems and technical advancements, MRI has continued to expand its role in providing crucial information regarding cancer diagnosis and management. In gynecological malignancies, this modality has assumed greater responsibility, particularly in the evaluation of cervical and endometrial cancers. In addition to conventional imaging, innovative techniques such as dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI and diffusion-weighted MRI show promise in offering early assessment of tumor response. This paper reviews the current role of MRI in gynecological cancers and highlights the potential of novel techniques in improving patient care.

New developments in the surgical therapy of cervical carcinoma

For almost a century abdominal radical hysterectomy has been the standard surgical treatment of early-stage macroscopic carcinoma of the uterine cervix. The excessive parametrial resection of the original procedures of Wertheim, Okabayashi, and Meigs has later been "tailored" to tumor extent. Systematic pelvic and eventually periaortic lymph node dissection is performed to identify and treat regional disease. Adjuvant (chemo)radiation therapy is liberally added to improve locoregional tumor control when histopathological risk factors are present. The therapeutic index of the current surgical treatment, particularly if combined with radiation, appears to be inferior to that of primary chemoradiation as an oncologically equivalent therapeutic alternative. Several avenues of new conceptual and technical developments have been used since the 1990s with the goal of improving the therapeutic index. These are: surgical staging, including sentinel node biopsy and nodal debulking; minimal access and recently robotic radical hysterectomy; fertility-preserving surgery; nerve-sparing radical hysterectomy; total mesometrial resection based on developmentally defined surgical anatomy; and supraradical hysterectomy. The superiority of these new developments over the standard treatment remains to be demonstrated by controlled prospective trials. Multimodality therapy including surgery for locally advanced disease represents another area of clinical research. Both neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by radical surgery, with or without adjuvant radiation, and completion surgery after (chemo)radiation are feasible and have to be compared to primary chemoradiation as the new nonsurgical treatment standard. Surgical treatment of postirradiation persisting or recurrent cervical carcinoma has been traditionally limited to pelvic exenteration for central disease. Applying the principle of developmentally derived anatomical compartments increases R0 resectability. The laterally extended endopelvic resection allows even the extirpation of a subset of visceral pelvic side wall tumors with clear margins. Many questions regarding the indication for these "ultraradical" operations, the surgery of irradiated tissues, and the optimal reconstructive procedures are still open and demand multi-institutional controlled trials to be answered.

Magnetic resonance imaging of endometrial and cervical cancer

In this article we review the current and developing roles of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in endometrial and cervical cancer. In endometrial cancer, the purpose of MRI is to stage the primary tumor and in particular to identify myometrial and cervical invasion and extra-uterine disease, thereby informing preoperative surgical planning. MRI is also used to safely select young patients suitable for fertility-preserving medical management. In cervical cancer, MRI has an established role in local staging and in assessing proximal extension of tumors in young women for feasibility of fertility-preserving surgery. It is used to plan radiotherapy for primary tumors in cervical cancer and particularly for conformal radiotherapy to deliver optimal doses to the tumor sites, while limiting unwanted exposure of bowel and other pelvic organs. In both cancers, MRI is used for diagnosing nodal disease, surveillance, detection of recurrence, and evaluation of complications secondary to treatment.

Current imaging modalities in the diagnosis of cervical cancer

Imaging has become an important adjunct to the clinical assessment of uterine cancer, specially magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies. In cervical cancer, the two areas in which MRI is superior to other diagnostic imaging modalities are local diseases staging and evaluation for local recurrence. MRI is an integral part in staging the primary tumour, monitoring responce to treatment, detecting complications and recurrence, and in planning radiotheraphy. MRI has a crucial role in the development of fertility-sparing surgery in young women with cervical cancer. Imaging continually evolves in response to changes in clinical practice and technologic improvements. The choice of imaging modality is not only case specific but also depends of the radiologic experience and equipment availability.

MRI of malignant neoplasms of the uterine corpus and cervix

OBJECTIVE

In this article, we review the role of MRI in the imaging of malignant neoplasms of the uterine corpus and cervix, describing its role in staging, treatment planning, and follow-up.

CONCLUSION

MRI is not officially incorporated in the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) staging system, but is already widely accepted as the most reliable imaging technique for the diagnosis, staging, treatment planning, and follow-up of both endometrial and cervical cancer. MRI protocols need to be optimized to obtain the best results and avoid pitfalls.

Magnetic resonance imaging appearances of recurrent cervical carcinoma

Our aim was to describe the patterns of disease recurrence and residual disease in patients treated for cervical carcinoma and to evaluate imaging features, which can help to differentiate recurrence and/or residual disease from posttreatment change. In a retrospective observational study, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans of 48 patients with recurrent or residual cervical carcinoma were reviewed by two radiologists. Sixteen patients had undergone primary surgical treatment and 32 were treated by chemoradiotherapy. Recurrence was confirmed by histology (28), clinical and radiologic progression (6), and by patient death (14) due to progressive disease. Magnetic resonance images were analyzed for the site of recurrent/residual disease, signal characteristics, and invasion of adjacent structures. There were 29 recurrences, while 19 patients had residual disease. Most of the recurrences (70.4%) occurred within the first year of the start of treatment. Recurrent disease was confined to the central axis of the cervix in six patients following chemoradiotherapy and to the vaginal cuff in three of these patients following surgery. The recurrent tumor was isointense to the adjacent muscles on T1-weighted sequence in 95.3% and hyperintense on T2-weighted in 88.9%. The cervix was involved in every case of residual disease and in 10 of 29 (34.5%) patients with recurrent disease. Recurrent disease was present in the vaginal cuff in 14 of 16 (87.5%) postsurgical patients. Parametrial invasion was present in 13 (81.3%) patients treated surgically and in 22 (68.8%) of those receiving chemoradiotherapy. Involvement of the uterosacral ligaments was seen in 8 (57.1%) surgical patients and 14 (43.8%) nonsurgical ones. Bladder invasion was seen in four (25.0%) patients treated surgically and three (9.4%) of those treated with chemoradiotherapy. Radiotherapy change within the marrow was seen in 13 (27.0%) patients in total, whereas bone metastases were present in 4 (8.3%) patients. Recurrent cervical carcinoma can present with varied imaging features. Knowledge of the patterns of recurrence can aid early detection and may determine further therapeutic options.

Therapeutic value of pretherapeutic extraperitoneal laparoscopic staging of locally advanced cervical carcinoma

BACKGROUND

Although cervical cancer is clinically staged, surgery has long been considered the best means to assess extrapelvic disease and remains the gold standard for the detection of both intraperitoneal spread and small volume nodal metastases. The objective of this study was to determine short- and long-term outcomes for patients with locally advanced cervical cancer who underwent pretherapeutic laparoscopic staging.

METHODS

From 1997 to 2004, 184 patients with stages IB2-IVA cervical cancer underwent pretherapeutic laparoscopic staging procedure including transperitoneal abdomino-pelvic exploration and extraperitoneal bilateral infrarenal paraaortic lymph node dissection. Patients were then treated with definitive radiotherapy tailored according to the staging results.

RESULTS

The median age and BMI were respectively 45.8 years old and 27.1 kg/m2. Most lesions were squamous (n=172) and clinical stage was evenly distributed. Median operative time was 155 min with an average of 20.8 lymph nodes removed. Postoperative hospital stay averaged 1.4 days. Major complications included 1 intraoperative ureteral injury and 1 postoperative bowel obstruction from an umbilical trocar site hernia. The final pathology revealed that 44 patients (24.3%) had metastatic disease within paraaortic lymph nodes. With a median follow-up of 26.8 months (average 32.9), 67 patients (36.4%) had recurrent disease. Overall 5-year survival rate was 58.3%. Successful resection of positive lymph node correlated with a survival advantage.

CONCLUSIONS

Pretherapeutic laparoscopic assessment of patients with locally advanced cervical cancer offers valuable information for individualized treatment planning with minimal morbidity. This appears to be a therapeutic effect with resection of positive nodes followed by a tailored chemoradiation therapy.

Staging of carcinoma of the uterine cervix and endometrium

Carcinoma of the uterine cervix and endometrium are common gynecologic malignancies. Both carcinomas are staged and managed by means of the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) staging system. In uterine cervical cancer, the FIGO staging system is determined preoperatively by limited conventional procedures. Although this system is effective for early stage disease, it has inherent inaccuracies in advanced stage diseases and does not address nodal involvement. CT and MR imaging are widely used as comprehensive imaging modalities to evaluate tumor size and extent, and nodal involvement. MR imaging is an excellent modality for depicting invasive cervical carcinoma and can provide objective measurement of tumor volume, and provides high negative predictive value for parametrial invasion and stage IVA disease. In contrast, endometrial cancer is surgically staged. Beside recognition of the important prognostic factors, including histologic subtype and grade, accurate assessment of the tumor extent on preoperative MR imaging is expected to greatly optimize surgical procedure and therapeutic strategy. Contrast-enhanced MR imaging can offer "one stop" examination for evaluating the depth of myometrial invasion cervical invasion and nodal metastases. Evaluation of myometrial invasion on MR imaging may be an alternative to gross inspection of the uterus during the surgery.