Gadofosveset as a Negative Contrast Agent for Detecting Metastatic Axillary Lymph Nodes in Breast Cancer Patients on Diffusion and T2* Weighted Images - A Proof of Principle

Mies A. Korteweg¹, Fredy Visser^1,2, Daniel L. Polders¹, Taro Takahara¹, Willem P.Th.M. Mali¹, Wouter B. Veldhuis¹

This abstract describes the pathology-controlled, retrospective, gadofosveset-enhanced 3T MRI characterization of axillary lymph nodes in breast cancer patients. Gadofosveset was hypothesized to accumulate in a higher concentration in healthy than in metastatic nodes. It was shown that the mean absolute T2* relaxation time and the post contrast signal intensity of the lesion to spinal cord ratio on diffusion-weighted (DWI) scans were significantly higher in metastatic compared to non-metastatic nodes. The preliminary results suggest that gadofosveset increased the transverse relaxation rate in healthy nodes causing a negative contrast effect on DWI scans, selectively preserving the signal of metastatic lymph nodes.