Variable-Resolution Dynamic Contrast-Enhanced Breast MRI Acquisition

Manojkumar Saranathan¹, Brian A. Hargreaves¹, Catherine J. Moran¹, Bruce Daniel¹

Dynamic-contrast enhanced (DCE) MRI is a standard element of clinical breast protocols, and is challenging due to the need for both high spatial and high temporal resolution. High temporal resolution is needed for accurate pharmacokinetic modeling and high spatial resolution for tumor characterization. Although some imaging protocols include a combination of rapid, low-resolution scans and slower high-resolution scans, these can cause practical complications such as delays and/or accidental changes to parameters (like gain) that could render the acquisition useless for quantifying contrast uptake. Here we present a simple, single scan technique that acquires images of variable temporal and spatial resolution, with the timing tailored to the contrast dynamics in breast imaging.