Abstract #0203

Manganese-Enhanced MRI for Early Detection of Breast Cancer Metastatic Potential

Joris Tchouala Nofiele¹,², Gregory J. Czarnota,²³, Hai-Ling Margaret Cheng¹,²

¹The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; ²Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; ³Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Early detection of metastatic potential is a crucial step in the treatment of breast cancer. Determining the aggressiveness and potential of breast cancer to metastasize is critical to selecting the most appropriate treatment before the cancer has spread. This study proposes that the metastatic potential of breast cancer cells can be determined based on cellular uptake of manganese. In-vitro quantitative MRI and elemental analysis show that very metastatic (e.g. MDA-MB-231) and less aggressive (e.g. MCF7) cancer cells are clearly distinguished. This new cellular imaging technique provides a much needed non-invasive capability for early determination of tumor cell aggressiveness.