Alshomrani Faisal
Department of Diagnostic Radiology Technology, College of Applied Medical Science, Taibah University, Medinah 41477, Saudi Arabia.
Diagnostics (Basel). 2025 Aug 12;15(16):2016. doi: 10.3390/diagnostics15162016.
MRI is a non-invasive imaging technique employed today in modern diagnostic medicine due to the fact it is capable of generating tissue architecture and function information with high image resolution without the use of ionizing radiation, unlike x-ray or CT scans. The advantages of MRI discussed in this review include better soft tissue contrast, the opportunity to perform imaging in different planes, and the ability to detect small changes in tissues, which helps to use MRI in many specialties, including cancer diagnosis and staging, as well as neurological and cardiovascular diseases. More particularly, this review aims to assess the contribution of MRI to the detection of liver cancer, especially HCC and ICC-the most frequent and aggressive types of pathology. Because of its high-resolution, MRI provides clear visualization of the small hepatic lesion and vascular mapping, which is crucial for early diagnosis and staging. It also reveals higher sensitivity and specificity than ultrasound and CT in identifying liver cancer dimensions and relations with system vasculature and a safer technique for patients who need many follow-up images. This is in addition to newer techniques that have been developed from MRI, which include the DWI, DCE-MRI, and MRE, all of which yield functional information concerning the perfusion of the tumor and the stiffness of the tissue, respectively, thus improving the diagnosis. Moreover, the application of artificial intelligence to MRI is improving lesion identification and cancer assessment, as well as patient outcome prediction, while relieving the burden of radiologists. Suggested improvements for future work include the combination of MRI with other diagnostic approaches, including circulating cell analysis and molecular imaging in managing liver cancer. Still, there is a limitation in MRI's access globally, because scanners are expensive and unavailable in some parts of the world. Technological improvements and greater availability will extend MRI more as a valuable modality in the treatment of liver malignancies, more so for diagnosis and staging.
磁共振成像（MRI）是现代诊断医学中使用的一种非侵入性成像技术，因为与X射线或CT扫描不同，它能够在不使用电离辐射的情况下以高图像分辨率生成组织结构和功能信息。本综述中讨论的MRI的优点包括更好的软组织对比度、在不同平面进行成像的机会以及检测组织微小变化的能力，这有助于MRI在许多专业领域的应用，包括癌症诊断和分期以及神经和心血管疾病。更具体地说，本综述旨在评估MRI对肝癌检测的贡献，特别是肝细胞癌（HCC）和肝内胆管癌（ICC）——最常见且侵袭性最强的病理类型。由于其高分辨率，MRI能够清晰显示肝脏小病变并进行血管成像，这对于早期诊断和分期至关重要。在识别肝癌大小以及与系统血管的关系方面，它还显示出比超声和CT更高的敏感性和特异性，并且对于需要多次随访成像的患者来说是一种更安全的技术。此外，从MRI发展而来的新技术，包括扩散加权成像（DWI）、动态对比增强磁共振成像（DCE - MRI）和磁共振弹性成像（MRE），都分别产生有关肿瘤灌注和组织硬度的功能信息，从而改善了诊断。此外，将人工智能应用于MRI正在改善病变识别、癌症评估以及患者预后预测，同时减轻放射科医生的负担。对未来工作的建议改进包括将MRI与其他诊断方法相结合，包括在肝癌管理中进行循环细胞分析和分子成像。不过，MRI在全球范围内的可及性存在限制，因为扫描仪昂贵，且在世界某些地区无法获得。技术改进和更高的可及性将使MRI在肝恶性肿瘤治疗中作为一种有价值的方式得到更广泛的应用，在诊断和分期方面更是如此。
