Lori R. Arlinghaus1, 2, Richard D. Dortch1, 2, Jennifer G. Whisenant1, 2, Gregory D. Ayers3, Adrienne N. Dula1, 2, Seth A. Smith1, 2, Thomas E. Yankeelov1, 2
1Institute of Imaging Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States; 2Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States; 3Department of Biostatistics, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
Magnetization transfer (MT) imaging is sensitive to changes in the macromolecular content of tissue and is, therefore, gaining increased attention as a noninvasive approach to probe the complex tumor environment in cancer. The amount of magnetization transfer between macromolecules and the surrounding free water in tissue can be quantified by the MT ratio (MTR). In this study, we explore the repeatability of MTR measurements in the breast fibroglandular tissue of healthy controls at 3T to serve as a benchmark for future longitudinal studies of breast cancer treatment.