Retrospective Cohort Study
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2022. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Cases. Mar 16, 2022; 10(8): 2393-2403
Published online Mar 16, 2022. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v10.i8.2393
Computed tomography perfusion imaging evaluation of angiogenesis in patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma
Wen Liu, Bo Yin, Zong-Hui Liang, Yang Yu, Na Lu
Wen Liu, Department of Radiology, Jinshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 201508, China
Bo Yin, Yang Yu, Na Lu, Department of Radiology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200000, China
Bo Yin, Na Lu, Department of Radiology, Huashan Hospital North, Fudan University, Shanghai 200000, China
Zong-Hui Liang, Department of Radiology, Shanghai Jing’an District Central Hospital, Huashan Hospital Jing’an Branch, Fudan University, Shanghai 200000, China
Author contributions: Liu W drafted the manuscript and assisted with data analysis; Yin B and Yu Y participated in the design and oversight of the study, and were involved in data collection; Lu N participated in the design of the study and assisted with data analysis; Liang ZH was involved in data collection and assisted with data analysis; all authors have read and approved the final manuscript.
Supported by the National Science Foundation of China, No. 81701686; the Science and Technology Commission of Shanghai Municipality, No. 134119b1600; and the Shanghai Natural Science Foundation, No. 18ZR1405700.
Institutional review board statement: This investigation was approved by the Institutional Review Board of Fudan University, Shanghai, China (2014-04-02).
Clinical trial registration statement: Not applicable.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors have declared that they have no competing interests.
Data sharing statement: No additional data are available.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Na Lu, Department of Radiology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, No. 12 Wulumuqi Middle Road, Jing’an District, Shanghai 200000, China. drluna@126.com
Received: August 14, 2021
Peer-review started: August 14, 2021
First decision: October 16, 2021
Revised: October 30, 2021
Accepted: February 16, 2022
Article in press: February 16, 2022
Published online: March 16, 2022
Abstract
BACKGROUND

Pancreatic adenocarcinoma is one of the most common malignant tumors of the digestive system. More than 80% of patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma are not diagnosed until late stage and have distant or local metastases.

AIM

To investigate the value of computed tomography (CT) perfusion imaging in the evaluation of angiogenesis in pancreatic adenocarcinoma patients.

METHODS

This is a retrospective cohort study. Patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma and volunteers without pancreatic diseases underwent CT perfusion imaging from December 2014 to August 2017 in Huashan Hospital, Fudan University Shanghai, China.

RESULTS

A total number of 35 pancreatic adenocarcinoma patients and 33 volunteers were enrolled. The relative blood flow (rBF), and relative blood volume (rBV) were significantly lower in patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma than in the control group (P < 0.05). Conversely, the relative permeability in patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma was significantly higher than that in controls (P < 0.05). In addition, rBF, rBV, and the vascular maturity index (VMI) were significantly lower in grade III-IV pancreatic adenocarcinoma than in grade I-II pancreatic adenocarcinoma (P < 0.05). Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), CD105-MVD, CD34-MVD, and angiogenesis rate (AR) were significantly higher in grade III-IV pancreatic adenocarcinoma than in grade I-II pancreatic adenocarcinoma (P < 0.05). Significant correlations between rBF and VEGF, CD105-MVD, AR, and VMI (P < 0.01) were observed. Moreover, the levels of rBV were statistically significantly correlated with those of VEGF, CD105-MVD, CD34-MVD, and VMI (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSION

Perfusion CT imaging may be an appropriate approach for quantitative assessment of tumor angiogenesis in pancreatic adenocarcinoma.

Keywords: Pancreatic adenocarcinoma, Perfusion computed tomography, Angiogenesis, Evaluation, Imaging, Quantitative assessment

Core Tip: A total of 35 pancreatic adenocarcinoma patients and 33 volunteers were enrolled in the study. The relative blood flow, relative blood volume, and relative peak enhancement were significantly lower in patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma than in the control group (P < 0.05). Conversely, the relative permeability in patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma was significantly higher than that in controls (P < 0.05).