We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies. Cookie Policy.

Features Partner Sites Information LinkXpress
Sign In
Advertise with Us
GLOBETECH PUBLISHING LLC

Download Mobile App




Events

ATTENTION: Due to the COVID-19 PANDEMIC, many events are being rescheduled for a later date, converted into virtual venues, or altogether cancelled. Please check with the event organizer or website prior to planning for any forthcoming event.

MRI More Accurate at Detecting Prostate Cancer than PSMA PET/CT Scanning

By MedImaging International staff writers
Posted on 05 Jul 2022
Print article
Image: New imaging technology is less accurate than MRI at detecting prostate cancer (Photo courtesy of Pexels)
Image: New imaging technology is less accurate than MRI at detecting prostate cancer (Photo courtesy of Pexels)

Prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) PET/CT scans are presently used to manage prostate cancer, as they can accurately measure the progression or recurrence of the disease. Approved by the US FDA in 2020, they use a radioactive dye to ‘light up’ areas of PSMA, which is found on the surface of prostate cancer cells. Now, a study has found that MRI scans can detect prostate cancer more accurately than the newer, prostate-specific -PSMA PET/CT scanning technique.

A team of researchers at St. Vincent’s Hospital (Melbourne, Australia) conducted a clinical trial to find if prostate-specific -PSMA PET/CT scans could be used to diagnose prostate cancer as well. The PEDAL trial recruited 240 patients across five hospital groups who were at risk of prostate cancer. Every patient was given both an MRI scan and a PSMA PET/CT scan. If imaging suggested the presence of prostate cancer, a biopsy was performed by the patient’s urologist.

The MRI scans picked up abnormalities in 141 patients, while the PSMA PET/CT scans picked up abnormalities in 198 patients. A total of 181 patients (75%) underwent a prostate biopsy, and subsequently 82 of those patients were found to have clinically significant prostate cancer. Since each patient had both type of scans, the researchers could assess which type had more accurately detected those patients who had prostate cancer. The researchers found that MRI scans were significantly more accurate at detecting any grade of prostate cancer than the PSMA PET scans (0.75% for MRI vs. 0.62% for PSMA PET). Although detection thresholds will be fine-tuned as diagnostic use develops, the researchers believe the trial has important lessons for clinicians.

“Our analysis found that MRI scans were better than PSMA-PET for detecting any grade of prostate cancer. When we looked only at clinically significant prostate cancers, there was no difference in accuracy. As this study is one of the first to explore using PSMA-PET to diagnose cancer within the prostate, we are still learning and adjusting how to improve using PSMA-PET in this setting,” said Associate Professor Lih-Ming Wong, Consultant Uro-oncologist at St Vincent’s Hospital, who headed the research team. “This study confirms that the existing ‘gold standard’ of pre-biopsy detection – the MRI – is indeed a high benchmark. Even with fine-tuning, we suspect PSMA PET/CT won’t replace the MRI as the main method of prostate cancer detection. But it will likely have application in the future as an adjunct to the MRI, or for people for whom an MRI is unsuitable, or as a single combined "diagnostic and staging” scan for appropriately selected patients.”

“New diagnostic tools need to be tested as carefully as new drugs, so we welcome the findings of this remarkable Phase III trial, which showed that MRI was superior in the detection of any prostate cancer,” added Professor Peter Albers, Chair of the European Association of Urology’s Chief Scientific Office. “It also showed that PSMA PET/CT was not inferior to MRI in the detection of clinically significant cancers (ISUP 2 and higher); and since the ultimate goal of primary staging will be to detect only the more aggressive cancers and avoid unnecessary biopsy, this is not the end of the story. More research will be needed to explore the PSMA PET/CT correlation between the standard uptake value (SUV) and cancer aggressiveness, but the first steps down the road in finding the best diagnostic approach to clinically significant prostate cancer have been taken.”

Related Links:
St. Vincent’s Hospital 

Gold Supplier
Ultrasound Phantom
Multi-Purpose Multi-Tissue Ultrasound Phantom - Model 040GSE
New
Retrofittable DR Mammography Solution
AirDR M
New
High-Frequency X-Ray Generator
Battery X-Ray Generator
New
Digital Chest and Bone Room
Atlas HC2

Print article
FIME - Informa
Sun Nuclear -    Mirion

Channels

Radiography

view channel
Image: BiOI ruby-like crystals can improve medical imaging safety by lowering intensities of harmful X-rays (Photo courtesy of University of Cambridge)

Sustainable Solar Cell Material Could Revolutionize Medical Imaging

The use of X-rays for internal body imaging has dramatically changed non-invasive medical diagnostics. Yet, the high dose of X-rays required for these imaging techniques, due to the poor performance of... Read more

Ultrasound

view channel
Image: A new study has shown the value of endoscopic ultrasound in NSCLC (Photo courtesy of Freepik)

Endoscopic Ultrasound Can Provide Value in NSCLC, Finds Study

The usefulness of confirmatory mediastinoscopy following tumor-negative results on endoscopic ultrasound still remains debatable among researchers. This procedure is often employed for mediastinal staging... Read more

Nuclear Medicine

view channel
Image: New imaging method offers potential for diagnosing, staging, and treating multiple types of cancer (Photo courtesy of SNMMI)

New Imaging Method Superior for Diagnosing Multiple Types of Cancer

Cancer-associated fibroblasts play a significant role in tumor development, migration, and progression. A subset of these fibroblasts expresses fibroblast activation protein (FAP), a protein prominently... Read more

Imaging IT

view channel
Image: The new Medical Imaging Suite makes healthcare imaging data more accessible, interoperable and useful (Photo courtesy of Google Cloud)

New Google Cloud Medical Imaging Suite Makes Imaging Healthcare Data More Accessible

Medical imaging is a critical tool used to diagnose patients, and there are billions of medical images scanned globally each year. Imaging data accounts for about 90% of all healthcare data1 and, until... Read more

Industry News

view channel
Image: The global AI-enabled medical imaging solutions market is expected to reach USD 18.36 billion in 2032 (Photo courtesy of Freepik)

Global AI-Enabled Medical Imaging Solutions Market Driven by Need for Early Disease Detection

The AI-enabled medical imaging solutions market is currently in its developmental stages, following the significant role of AI-based tools in combating the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic saw an upswing... Read more
Copyright © 2000-2023 Globetech Media. All rights reserved.