Perfusion MDCT of Prostate Cancer: Correlation of Perfusion CT Parameters and Immunohistochemical Markers of Angiogenesis

OBJECTIVE. The aim of our study was to correlate perfusion MDCT parameters and immunohistochemical markers of angiogenesis in prostate cancer. SUBJECTS AND METHODS. Twenty-two patients scheduled for radical surgical prostatectomy because of biopsy-proven prostate cancer underwent perfusion CT on a 64-MDCT scanner. Eight contiguous 5-mm sections were acquired at 1-second intervals for 45 seconds followed by three additional scans every 10 seconds after the administration of 80 mL of iodinated contrast medium (350 mg I/mL). Blood volume, blood flow, mean transit time, and permeability surface-area product were calculated, dividing each slice into nine square regions. Values obtained were correlated with the mean microvessel density (MVD) and mean vascular area of corresponding areas on histologic macrosections. RESULTS. The mean values of the perfusion parameters detected on all square fields of patients with prostate cancer, benign hyperplasia, chronic prostatitis, and healthy tissue were, respectively, 18.36 +/- 6.30, 19.49 +/- 8.46, 19.67 +/- 11.44, and 20.32 +/- 4.53 mL/min/100 g for blood flow; 8.45 +/- 2.75, 6.21 +/- 4.32, 4.94 +/- 2.31, and 5.44 +/- 2.67 mL/100 mg for blood volume; 19.19 +/- 4.45, 18.74 +/- 4.91, 16.24 +/- 4.12, and 16.37 +/- 4.83 seconds for mean transit time; and 26.34 +/- 11.88, 18.67 +/- 9.15, 18.08 +/- 7.72, and 19.93 +/- 7.22 mL/min/100 g for permeability surface-area product. Both blood volume and the permeability surface-area product of cancerous squares showed the highest correlation with mean MVD and mean vascular area (0.618 [p < 0.01] and 0.614 [p < 0.01], respectively) and the highest area under the curve (0.769 and 0.708). CONCLUSION. Our results show that blood volume and permeability surface-area product measurements obtained with perfusion CT have the highest correlation with immunohistochemical markers of angiogenesis in prostate cancer.