MR Imaging of Benign and Malignant Pleural Disease
Wednesday, May 14th, 2008.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging Clinics of North America. 2008 May;16(2):319-39. [Link]
Gill RR, Gerbaudo VH, Jacobson FL, Trotman-Dickenson B, Matsuoka S, Hunsaker A, Sugarbaker DJ, Hatabu H.
Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 75 Francis Street, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
Abstract
MR imaging serves as a problem-solving tool in the diagnosis of inflammatory and infectious pleural diseases and primary and secondary pleural malignancies. Knowledge of MR imaging appearance of pleural diseases, including pleural effusions and empyema, benign and malignant pleural tumors, and especially mesothelioma, helps guide treatment decisions and surgical planning.
Glossary
- imaging
- any method used to produce a picture of internal body structures. Some imaging methods used to detect cancer are x-rays (including mammograms and CT scans), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), scintigraphy, and ultrasound.
- diagnosis
- identifying a disease by its signs or symptoms, and by using imaging procedures and laboratory findings. The earlier a diagnosis of cancer is made, the better the chance for long-term survival.
- benign
- (be-nine) not cancer; not malignant.
- mesothelioma
- a tumor derived from mesothelial tissue, such as the peritoneum (lining the abdomen) or pleura (lining the lungs). More on mesothelioma.
