BACKGROUNDDiffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging has shown promise in the detection and quantification of hepatic fibrosis. In addition, the liver has numerous endogenous micro-RNAs (miRs) that play important roles in the regulation of biological processes such as cell proliferation and hepatic fibrosis.AIMTo assess diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging and miRs in diagnosing and staging hepatic fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis C.METHODSThis prospective study included 208 patients and 82 age- and sex-matched controls who underwent diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging of the abdomen, miR profiling, and liver biopsy. Pathological scoring was classified according to the METAVIR scoring system. The apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) and miR were calculated and correlated with pathological scoring.RESULTSThe ADC value decreased significantly with the progression of fibrosis, from controls (F0) to patients with early fibrosis (F1 and F2) to those with late fibrosis (F3 and F4) (median 1.92, 1.53, and 1.25 × 10-3 mm2/s, respectively) (P = 0.001). The cut-off ADC value used to differentiate patients from controls was 1.83 × 10-3 mm2/s with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.992. Combining ADC and miR-200b revealed the highest AUC (0.995) for differentiating patients from controls with an accuracy of 96.9%. The cut-off ADC used to differentiate early fibrosis from late fibrosis was 1.54 × 10-3 mm2/s with an AUC of 0.866. The combination of ADC and miR-200b revealed the best AUC (0.925) for differentiating early fibrosis from late fibrosis with an accuracy of 80.2%. The ADC correlated with miR-200b (r = - 0.61, P = 0.001), miR-21 (r = - 0.62, P = 0.001), and miR-29 (r = 0.52, P = 0.001).CONCLUSIONCombining ADC and miRs offers an alternative surrogate non-invasive diagnostic tool for diagnosing and staging hepatic fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis C.

Background Prostate cancer (PCa) is considered to be the commonest cancer among males. Early and precise diagnosis of PCa is essential for adequate treatment. Multiparametric MR imaging (mpMRI) is actually the most precise imaging technique used for early diagnosis of PCa. The aim of this work was to assess the diagnostic capability of biparametric MRI (bpMRI) and multiparametric MRI (mpMRI) of PI-RADS V2.1 in detection of prostate cancer (PCa). This prospective study was carried on 60 male patients with high PSA. bpMRI and mpMRI were performed for all patients using a 3-T MRI scanner. The diagnostic performance of bpMRI of PI-RADS V2.1 was compared to that of mpMRI of PI-RADS V 2.1. The diagnosis of Pca was confirmed by transrectal ultrasound-guided biopsy and the results of open prostatectomy specimens. Results When considering PI-RADS categories 1, 2, and 3 as benign and categories 4 and 5 as malignant, mpMRI had higher sensitivity and diagnostic accuracy when compared with bpMRI (sensitivity was 88.6% for mpMRI versus 60% for bpMRI and diagnostic accuracy was 91.7% for mpMRI versus 75% for bpMRI). When considering PI-RADS categories 1 and 2 as benign and PI-RADS categories 3.4 and 5 as malignant, the sensitivity and diagnostic accuracy of bpMRI and mpMRI were comparable (sensitivity was 94.3% for both bpMRI and mpMRI and diagnostic accuracy was 86.7% for both bpMRI and mpMRI). Conclusion Considering PI-RADS scores 4 and 5 as malignant, mpMRI had higher sensitivity and diagnostic accuracy when compared with bpMRI; however, when considering PI-RADS scores 3, 4, and 5 as malignant, both bpMRI and mpMRI had similar diagnostic accuracy.