Diffusion-Weighted Imaging in Abdominal Oncology

Diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DWI) can provide functional information on a cellular level by measuring water diffusion values. DWI is sensitive to changes in the micro diffusion of water and the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) is an indicator of the movement of water within the tissue. In abdominal oncology, DWI has been successfully used for the features of liver and prostate lesions, particularly for the differentiation of benign and malignant neoplasm. In addition, ADC values have been shown to predict tumor response to treatment. In some instances low tumor ADC before treatment can be predictive of better outcome. However, studies found a considerable overlap between ADC values of malignant and benign lesions and the reproducibility of DWI measurements is limited. Combinations of conventional MRI, MR spectroscopy or dynamic enhancement as well as standardization of DWI acquisition are needed to receive reliable results. In this review we focus on the most common applications of DWI in abdominal oncology and provide an assessment of the value of DWI.