MRI-Based Stepwise Approach to Anterior Mediastinal Cystic Lesions for Diagnosis and Further Management.
Jong Hee KimJooae ChoeHong Kwan KimHo Yun LeePublished in: Korean journal of radiology (2023)
As the majority of incidentally detected lesions in the anterior mediastinum is small nodules with soft tissue appearance, the differential diagnosis has typically included thymic neoplasm and prevascular lymph node, with benign cyst. Overestimation or misinterpretation of these lesions can lead to unnecessary surgery for ultimately benign conditions. nonsurgical anterior mediastinal lesions. The pitfalls of MRI evaluation for anterior mediastinal cystic lesions are as follows: first, we acknowledge the limitation of T2-weighted images for evaluating benign cystic lesions. Due to variable contents within benign cystic lesions, such as hemorrhage, T2 signal intensity may be variable. Second, owing to extensive necrosis and cystic changes, the T2 shine-through effect may be seen on diffusion-weighted images (DWI), and small solid portions might be missed on enhanced images. Therefore, both enhancement and DWI with apparent diffusion coefficient values should be considered. An algorithm will be suggested for the diagnostic evaluation of anterior mediastinal cystic lesions, and finally, a management strategy based on MRI features will be suggested.
Keyphrases
- lymph node
- contrast enhanced
- diffusion weighted
- diffusion weighted imaging
- magnetic resonance imaging
- deep learning
- convolutional neural network
- minimally invasive
- soft tissue
- machine learning
- magnetic resonance
- squamous cell carcinoma
- ultrasound guided
- radiation therapy
- computed tomography
- coronary artery disease
- early stage
- neoadjuvant chemotherapy
- acute coronary syndrome
- sentinel lymph node
- atrial fibrillation