Perfusion parameters, such as blood flow, are critical properties of tumors related to angiogenesis, drug delivery, radiosensitivity, bioenergetic status, and steady state levels of metabolites, such as lactate, that have been proposed as indices of tumor response to therapy. The existing MR methods for measuring tumor blood flow (TBF) have limitations related to sensitivity, spatial resolution, or dependence on other physiological properties such as vascular permeability. To address many of these difficulties, this study introduces the use of an (17)O-enriched tracer in conjunction with high-resolution, indirect MRI to measure TBF. To demonstrate the advantages of this technique, relative TBF was measured in subcutaneous RIF-1 tumors in C3H mice by monitoring the uptake of H(2) (17)O with a resolution of 0.16 x 0.31 x 3 mm in 13 sec. At this resolution, tumor heterogeneity with respect to blood flow is clearly visible. Measurement of the tracer arterial input function, which is necessary for determination of absolute blood flow, may be facilitated with improved temporal resolution.
Copyright 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc.