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Stereotactic body radiation therapy of liver tumors: post-treatment appearances and evaluation of treatment response: a pictorial review

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Abstract

Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) is a noninvasive treatment technique for selected patients with primary liver tumors and liver-confined oligometastatic disease. Recently, SBRT has emerged as an alternative treatment option in non-surgical candidates and in whom percutaneous treatment methods are not possible or contraindicated. The experience with SBRT continues to grow. There are currently no imaging guidelines for assessment of tumor response and follow-up schedule following SBRT. SBRT produces characteristic radiation-induced changes in the treated tumor and surrounding liver parenchyma. Knowledge of these changes is essential in the interpretation of follow-up imaging and assessment of treatment response. In this review, we will describe the CT, MRI, and PET imaging findings following SBRT of both the targeted liver tumor and surrounding hepatic parenchyma.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA

    Mustafa M. Haddad, Geoffrey B. Johnson, Jeff L. Fidler & Sudhakar K. Venkatesh

  2. Department of Radiation Oncology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA

    Kenneth W. Merrell, Christopher L. Hallemeier & Kenneth R. Olivier

  3. Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA

    Taofic Mounajjed

Authors
  1. Mustafa M. Haddad
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  2. Kenneth W. Merrell
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  3. Christopher L. Hallemeier
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  4. Geoffrey B. Johnson
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  5. Taofic Mounajjed
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  7. Jeff L. Fidler
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  8. Sudhakar K. Venkatesh
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Correspondence to Sudhakar K. Venkatesh.

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All authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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This retrospective image review study was approved by the institution review board with a waiver of informed consent for retrospective image analysis.

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CME activity This article has been selected as the CME activity for the current month. Please visit https://ce.mayo.edu/node/24286 and follow the instructions to complete this CME activity.

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Haddad, M.M., Merrell, K.W., Hallemeier, C.L. et al. Stereotactic body radiation therapy of liver tumors: post-treatment appearances and evaluation of treatment response: a pictorial review. Abdom Radiol 41, 2061–2077 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00261-016-0768-x

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