Multimodal Characterization of In Vivo Metabolic Activities with Hyperpolarized 13C MRI, 18F-FDG PET, and EPR Imaging in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma Tumors

Profiling the metabolic and physiologic phenotypes of tumors has become important in treatment planning and response monitoring. Here, multimodal imaging methods, including hyperpolarized ¹³C MRI, ¹⁸F-FDG PET, and EPRI imaging, were used to profile the metabolic and physiologic features of human pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) tumors, Hs766t, MiaPaCa-2, and SU.86.86. PDACs have some of the worst prognoses of all cancers. Experimental results have demonstrated, for the first time, the feasibility and advantages of multimodal metabolic and physiologic assessment of xenograft tumors. This multimodal imaging approach will complement tumor characterization, lead to better prognostics, and earlier response monitoring in cancer treatment.