[Evaluation of the effect of transcatheter arterial chemoembolization in treatment of primary hepatocellular carcinoma with magnetic resonance diffusion-weighted imaging: 4-6-week follow-up of 25 cases].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the value of MR diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) in evaluating the efficacy of treatment of primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) by transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE).

METHODS: Twenty-five HCC patients, 19 males and 6 females, aged 54, underwent TACE. Conventional T1WI, T2WI, and DWI and dynamic enhanced MRI were conducted before the first TACE and after every TACE procedure for 4-6 weeks. The differences in the mean apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) value of the remaining tumor, coagulation tumor necrotic tissue, and post-operative recurrent tumor tissue were compared and analyzed.

RESULTS: When the b value was 1000 s/mm(2), the ADC values of the liver tissue, tumor tissue before first TACE, remaining tumor, coagulation tumor necrotic tissue, and post-operative recurrent tumor were 1.25 +/- 0.07, 1.02 +/- 0.19, 1.06 +/- 0.14, 1.68 +/- 0.32, and 1.28 +/- 0.07 mmxs(-1)x10(-3) respectively. The ADC value of the coagulation tumor necrotic tissue was significantly higher than those of the other tissues (F = 23.25, P < 0 05). The ADC values of the tumor tissue before the first TACE was the lowest, and the ADC value of the post-operative recurrent tumor was significantly higher than that of the tumor tissue before the first TACE (P < 0.05). The ADC value of the remaining tumor tissue was between that of the post-operative recurrent tumor and that of the tumor tissue before the first TACE, however, without significant differences among them.

CONCLUSION: This study is the first relatively long-term follow-up study of the value of TACE in HCC treatment with DWI. DWI can differentiate the remaining tumor, necrosis of tumor, and recurrence of tumor in HCC after TACE. It helps provide valuable imaging information for treatment and follow-up of the HCC patients.