NMR in cancer.XI. Application of the NMR malignancy index to human gastro-intestinal tumors

Abstract

One hundred two specimens of human gastro-intestinal tissue taken from eighty-seven individuals were inspected by proton magnetic resonance techniques (at 22.5 Megahertz). The purpose of the study was to evaluate the diagnostic capabilities of the nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) technique with regard to the diagnosis of malignancy. The combination of two NMR parameters (spin-lattice ((T1) and spin-spin ((T2)) relaxation times) into a malignancy index yielded complete discrimination between the two populations of tissue. The mean and standard deviations obtained were 2.004 +/- 0.342 for normal tissue, and 3.266 +/- 0.642 for malignant specimens. In addition, the NMR technique indicated that histologically normal tissue taken adjacent to the malignancy was pathologically "involved". Analysis of the electrolyte and water content of such tissues confirms this abnormality.

The magnetization transfer characteristics of human breast tissues: anin vitroNMR study

“…Arulmozhi et al (1988) measured malignant breast tissues at 0.5 T at 27 • C and these data show good agreement with the T1 data of table 1. Tissue sample temperatures and the SDs of T1 values were not reported by Goldsmith et al (1978). If their adipose and normal breast tissue data were obtained at a room temperature of about 20-25 • C, they would be in close agreement with the corresponding T1 data of table 1.…”

“…Other workers show mean adipose T1 values which are much smaller than for other breast tissues. Considerable image contrast is therefore available between adipose and other breast tissue types, as is widely recognized (Goldsmith et al 1978).…”

NMR in cancer, XIII: application of the NMR malignancy index to human mammary tumours

“…This is true despite the fact that these benign pathologies came from patients with cancer, a situation which might give high values to histologically normal tissue (Frey et al, 1972;Koutcher et al, 1977;Goldsmith et al, 1978;Fruchter et al, 1978). In addition, the earlier results of Medina et al (1975) demonstrated that, although fibroadenomas could not be immediately distinguished from cancer, fibrocystic disease gave relaxation values not significantly different from normal tissue.…”

Investigation of microenvironmental factors influencing the longitudinal relaxation times of drugs and other compounds

“…Taking water as an example of a low molecular weight polar compound, variations in the observed relaxation times of water protons have previously been used to report on the physical and chemical state of in vivo microenvironments. Attempts at measuring, for example, the interstitial pressure of tumors have been reported [1,2], though generally it has been found that aqueous in vivo relaxation times lack diagnostic or prognostic specificity [3][4][5]. However, many fundamental biological processes, including cell signaling and enzyme action, are acutely sensitive to the biophysical state of the microenvironment.…”