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Abstract #4279

Radiation Toxicity to the Normal Brain Detected by Echoplanar Spectroscopic Imaging in Patients with Brain Metastases Treated with Whole Brain Radiation Therapy

Sanjeev Chawla1, Sumei Wang1, Sulaiman Sheriff2, Lisa Desiderio1, Alexander Lin3, Harry Quon3, Ramesh Rengan3, Elias R. Melhem1, Andrew Maudsley2, Harish Poptani1

1Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States; 2Radiology, University of Miami, Miami, FL, United States; 3Radiation Oncology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States


Echoplanar spectroscopic imaging (EPSI) was performed serially in patients with brain metastasis undergoing whole brain radiation therapy to assess metabolic alterations in the normal brain. NAA/Cr and Cho/Cr ratios were measured from dorsolateral-prefrontal-cortex, cingulate-gyrus, thalamus, hippocampus and basal ganglia. In general, a decrease in NAA/Cr was noted from several regions while the Cho/Cr ratio decreased in some regions with a concomitant increase in other regions probably due to neurodegenerative effects of whole brain radiation. These results suggest that EPSI may be used for detecting radiation toxicity to the normal brain in patients with brain metastases treated with radiation therapy.