Radiomics and Radiogenomics in Pelvic Oncology: Current Applications and Future Directions

Abstract

Radiomics refers to the conversion of medical imaging into high-throughput, quantifiable data in order to analyse disease patterns, guide prognosis and aid decision making. Radiogenomics is an extension of radiomics that combines conventional radiomics techniques with molecular analysis in the form of genomic and transcriptomic data, serving as an alternative to costly, labour-intensive genetic testing. Data on radiomics and radiogenomics in the field of pelvic oncology remain novel concepts in the literature. We aim to perform an up-to-date analysis of current applications of radiomics and radiogenomics in the field of pelvic oncology, particularly focusing on the prediction of survival, recurrence and treatment response. Several studies have applied these concepts to colorectal, urological, gynaecological and sarcomatous diseases, with individual efficacy yet poor reproducibility. This article highlights the current applications of radiomics and radiogenomics in pelvic oncology, as well as the current limitations and future directions. Despite a rapid increase in publications investigating the use of radiomics and radiogenomics in pelvic oncology, the current evidence is limited by poor reproducibility and small datasets. In the era of personalised medicine, this novel field of research has significant potential, particularly for predicting prognosis and guiding therapeutic decisions. Future research may provide fundamental data on how we treat this cohort of patients, with the aim of reducing the exposure of high-risk patients to highly morbid procedures.

Molecular Profile of Important Genes for Radiogenomics in the Amazon Indigenous Population

“…In the European world, the applications of radiogenomics concepts are more advanced, considering studies such as those by O'Sullivan, NJ; Kelly [64], which used models to predict metastases after neoadjuvant radiotherapy and showed how these concepts can be used to identify low-risk patients in order not to subject them to interventions such as tumor dissection. In addition, radiogenomics has also been used to predict genetic mutations in colorectal cancer to optimize the outcome of radiotherapy and enable targeted therapy [65].…”