Janine M. Lupo1, Mekhail Anwar2, Christopher P. Hess1, Susan M. Chang3, Sarah J. Nelson1, 4
1Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California, San Francisco, CA, United States; 2Department of Radiation Oncology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, United States; 3Department of Neurosurgery, University of California, San Francisco, CA, United States; 4Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, CA, United States
Despite the damage that radiation can cause to microvasculature, radiotherapy is an integral component in the management of patients with glioma. This study uses SWI to investigate the effects of radiation dose on microbleed characteristics in glioma patients with and without adjuvant anti-angiogenic therapy. The number of microbleeds was found to increase with escalating dose level at 2 years after radiation was administered. Microbleed size was not related to radiation dose and varied substantially in patients who received anti-angiogenic therapy. Although initially microbleeds occur in high dose regions, as time progressed, more microbleeds appear in lower dose regions.