Gadoxetate Acid-Enhanced MR Imaging for HCC: A Review for Clinicians
Figure 1
(a) Gadoxetate acid-enhanced MRI in the arterial phase in a 51-year-old male with alcoholic liver cirrhosis showing a hyperenhancing nodule in the liver segment 6. (b) Equilibrium phase imaging shows isointense appearance with no hypointense washout. The diagnosis of HCC is therefore not confirmed in the dynamic vascular phases. (c) Hepatobiliary phase imaging at 20 minutes after injection shows a hypointense nodule against the background of enhancing liver parenchyma, implying lack of lesional uptake. This additional information allowed more confident diagnosis of HCC. Final histopathology was a well-differentiated Edmondson-Steiner grade I HCC.
