Chris James Rose1, James Patrick O'Connor1, Yvonne Watson1, Caleb Roberts1, Giovannni A. Buonaccorsi1, Susan Cheung1, Brandon Whitcher2, Gordon Jayson3, Alan Jackson1, Geoffrey J. Parker1
1Imaging Science and Biomedical Engineering, School of Cancer and Imaging Sciences, The University of Manchester, Manchester, UK; 2MRI Modelling, Clinical Imaging Centre, GlaxoSmithKline, London, UK; 3Cancer Research UK Dept. of Medical Oncology, The Christie, Manchester, UK
In the context of clinical trials of anti-cancer therapies, there is limited evidence that biomarkers derived from DCE-MRI and tracer kinetic modelling have predictive value. It has been speculated that intratumoural spatial heterogeneityneglected by conventional analysesmay carry useful information. We applied spatial heterogeneity analysis to a clinical trial of combined chemo- and anti-VEGF therapy. Multiple regression and correlation analyses revealed a statistically significant (p ≤ 0.001) correlation between median Ktrans and spatial heterogeneity of ve mapsmeasured before treatment at baselineand reduction in tumour size measured after five two week cycles, indicating that treatment response can be predicted at baseline.