1Center
for MR Research, University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences
System, Chicago, IL, United States; 2Radiology, University of
Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System, Chicago, IL, United States; 3Bioengineering,
University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States; 4Pathology,
University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System, Chicago, IL,
United States; 5Urology, University of Illinois Hospital &
Health Sciences System, Chicago, IL, United States
We investigated the utility of diffusion MR imaging in prostate, using a fractional order calculus (FROC) model, to differentiate normal peripheral zone, areas of chronic prostatitis, benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH), and prostate cancer. Twenty-five patients were included in the study. Guided by conventional MRI and histopathologic findings, diffusion MR imaging data were analyzed using the FROC model, generating a new diffusion parameter β, based on tissue heterogeneity and complex microenvironment. A significant difference in β values in different tissue types were observed, demonstrating the feasibility of an imaging biomarker for characterizing and differentiating normal, benign and malignant processes in prostate.
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