Myometrial invasion and cervical invasion by endometrial carcinoma: Evaluation by CO2-volumetric interpolated breathhold examination (VIBE)

Diagnostic Accuracy of MRI for Detecting Cervical Invasion in Patients with Endometrial Carcinoma: A Meta-Analysis

Objectives: To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the preoperative assessment of cervical invasion and to analyse the influence of different imaging protocols in patients with endometrial carcinoma.

Methods: An extensive search of articles about MRI for assessing cervical invasion in patients with endometrial carcinoma was performed on PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and Clinical Trials from January 2000 to July 2020. Two reviewers independently evaluated the methodological quality of each study by using the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies-2 (QUADAS-2). Diagnostic accuracy results and additional useful information were extracted. The pooled estimation data was obtained by statistical analysis.

Results: A total of 42 eligible studies were included in the meta-analysis. Significant evidence of heterogeneity was found for detecting cervical invasion (I² = 74.1%, P = 0.00 for sensitivity and I² = 56.2%, P = 0.00 for specificity). The pooled sensitivity and specificity of MRI were 0.58 and 0.95 respectively. The use of higher field strength (3.0 T) demonstrated higher pooled sensitivity (0.74). Using diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) alone presented higher pooled sensitivity (0.86) than using other sequences. The studies that used dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI (DCE-MRI) alone showed higher sensitivity (0.80) and specificity (0.96) than those that used T2-weighted imaging (T2WI) alone.

Conclusions: MRI shows high specificity for detecting cervical infiltration in endometrial carcinoma. Using DWI or a 3.0-T device may improve the pooled sensitivity. DCE-MRI demonstrates higher pooled sensitivity and specificity than T2WI.

Comparison of dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging with T2-weighted imaging for preoperative staging of early endometrial carcinoma

Purpose

This study aimed to compare dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE-MRI) with T2-weighted imaging (T2WI) for the preoperative staging of early endometrial carcinoma.

Methods

This retrospective study included 22 subjects with early endometrial carcinoma who underwent 3.0 T MRI examination prior to hysterectomy. DCE-MRI and T2WI were evaluated for the preoperative staging of endometrial carcinoma. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), and accuracy of DCE-MRI and T2WI were assessed and compared using the revised International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics surgical staging guidelines (2009) as the reference standard.

Results

Out of the 22 cases of endometrial carcinoma, the use of the reference standard method led to the staging of 14 as IA and eight as IB. The sensitivity, specificity, PPV, NPV, and accuracy of DCE-MRI for preoperative staging were 100% (95% confidence interval: 0.73–1.0), 62.5% (95% CI: 0.26–0.90), 82.4% (95% CI: 0.56–0.95), 100% (95% CI: 0.46–1.0), and 86.4%, respectively, and these values were 85.7% (95% CI: 0.56–0.97), 75% (95% CI: 0.36–0.96), 85.7% (95% CI: 0.56–0.97), 75% (95% CI: 0.36–0.96), and 81.8%, respectively, for T2WI. Thus, the sensitivity and accuracy of DCE-MRI were greater than those of T2WI for preoperative endometrial carcinoma staging.

Conclusion

DCE-MRI was more sensitive but less specific than T2WI for the preoperative staging of early endometrial carcinoma. DCE-MRI may serve as a useful and reliable tool for the preoperative assessment of endometrial carcinoma.

A retrospective review of magnetic resonance imaging in assessing the extent of myometrial infiltration for patients with endometrial carcinoma

The surgical treatment of endometrial malignancy is based on pre-operative assessment of differentiation, myometrial and lymph node infiltration. Studies have reported the use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with conflicting results. This study aims to review the pre-operative accuracy of MRI against the histology in endometrial cancer within a district hospital. A total of 112 women were identified from January 1997 to December 2004. The post-operative FIGO staging showed 76.2% Stage I, 7.6% Stage II, 14.3% Stage III and 1.7% Stage IV. A total of 57% (n = 60) had a pre-operative MRI. The myometrial infiltration was difficult to interpret in 31 MRIs. The time between hysteroscopy and MRI scan in those cases was shorter (Mean 3 weeks, SD +/- 1.5) than in reports with a clear interpretation (4.4 weeks, SD +/- 1.6). Sensitivity for MRI to detect deep myometrial infiltration was 35.7% (5/14) and specificity 50% (23/46). Accuracy was 46.6% (28/60). The presented data suggests a poor predictability of myometrial invasion by MRI but the numbers are small and MRI is a rapidly evolving modality. The conclusions must be treated with caution and cannot easily be applied to large gynaecological cancer units in general.

Diffusion-weighted single-shot echo-planar imaging with parallel technique in assessment of endometrial cancer

OBJECTIVE

The purposes of this study were to determine the feasibility of diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) with a single-shot echo-planar sequence and parallel technique for depicting endometrial cancer and to examine the role of this technique in preoperative assessment.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS

A total of 31 patients were recruited for MRI evaluation of suspicious endometrial lesions found on transvaginal sonography. Twenty-four of the patients were proved to have endometrial cancer (patient group), and seven to have benign diseases (control group). The MRI examinations included diffusion-weighted single-shot echoplanar sequences and contrast-enhanced T1-weighted 3D fat-suppressed spoiled gradient-echo sequences. The apparent diffusion coefficient of endometrial cancer in the patient group and of normal endometrium in the control group were measured on the apparent diffusion coefficient map of each diffusion-weighted image and compared for the two groups. In the patient group, myometrial invasion was evaluated with the two sequences. The diagnostic accuracy rates of each pulse sequence were compared.

RESULTS

The mean apparent diffusion coefficient of endometrial cancer was 0.864 x 10(-3) mm2/s and that of benign endometrial lesions was 1.277 x 10(-3) mm2/s. The difference between the two groups was significant (p = 0.0058). The diagnostic accuracy for myometrial invasion was 61.9% for DWI and 71.4% for gadolinium-enhanced T1-weighted 3D fat-suppressed spoiled gradient-recalled echo images. In five cases, DWI provided information about tumor extent and depicted the tumor focus, findings that changed preoperative staging.

CONCLUSION

DWI performed with parallel imaging technique has potential as a method for differentiating benign from malignant endometrial lesions. It also provides valuable information for preoperative evaluation and should be considered part of routine preoperative MRI evaluation for endometrial cancer.