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Assessment of Melanin Content and its Influence on Susceptibility Contrast in Melanoma Metastases

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Abstract

Purpose

To quantify the influence of melanin content on magnetic susceptibility of cerebral melanoma metastases.

Methods

Patients with non-hemorrhagic metastases were included based on the absence of susceptibility blooming artifacts. Susceptibility maps were calculated from 3D gradient echo data, using Laplacian-based phase unwrapping, sophisticated harmonic artefact reduction for phase data (V-SHARP) with varying spherical kernel sizes for background field removal and the iLSQR algorithm for the inversion of phase data. Susceptibility maps were referenced to cerebrospinal fluid. Non-hemorrhagic metastases were identified on contrast-enhanced T1-weighted images and susceptibility weighted images. Metastases masks were drawn on T1-weighted post-contrast images and used to compute mean susceptibility values of each metastasis.

Results

A total of 33 non-hemorrhagic melanoma brain metastases in 20 patients were quantitatively evaluated. Metastases without and with hyperintense signal on T1-weighted images, which corresponds to the melanin content, showed median susceptibility values of −0.028 ppm and −0.020 ppm, respectively. The susceptibility differences between metastases without and with T1-weighted hyperintense signal was not statistically significant (p ≥ 0.05).

Conclusion

Non-hemorrhagic cerebral melanoma metastases showed weak diamagnetic susceptibility values and susceptibility did not significantly correlate to T1-weighted signals. Therefore, melanin does not seem to be a major contributor to susceptibility in cerebral melanoma metastases.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medical Physics in Radiology, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Im Neuenheimer Feld 280, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany

    Sina Straub, Frederik B. Laun, Michael Denoix & Mark E. Ladd

  2. Department of Radiology, University Hospital Erlangen, Schwabachanlage 10, 91054, Erlangen, Germany

    Frederik B. Laun

  3. Department of Radiology, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Im Neuenheimer Feld 280, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany

    Martin T. Freitag, Heinz-Peter Schlemmer & Till M. Schneider

  4. Department of Neuropathology, Institute of Pathology, University of Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 224, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany

    Christian Kölsche & Andreas von Deimling

  5. German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), CCU Neuropathology, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Im Neuenheimer Feld 280, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany

    Christian Kölsche & Andreas von Deimling

  6. Faculty of Medicine, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany

    Mark E. Ladd

  7. Faculty of Physics and Astronomy, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany

    Mark E. Ladd

  8. Department of Neuroradiology, University of Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 400, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany

    Martin Bendszus & Till M. Schneider

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  1. Sina Straub
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Till M. Schneider.

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Conflict of interest

S. Straub, F.B. Laun, M.T. Freitag, C. Kölsche, A. von Deimling, M. Denoix, M. Bendszus, H.-P. Schlemmer, M.E. Ladd and T.M. Schneider declare that they have no competing interests.

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Straub, S., Laun, F.B., Freitag, M.T. et al. Assessment of Melanin Content and its Influence on Susceptibility Contrast in Melanoma Metastases. Clin Neuroradiol 30, 607–614 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00062-019-00816-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00062-019-00816-x

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