NONCRITICAL SOFT-TISSUES OF THE FEMALE PELVIS - SERIAL MR-IMAGING BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER RADIATION-THERAPY

PURPOSE: To present the findings of the irradiated noncritical soft ti ssues of the female pelvis at magnetic resonance (MR) imaging within 1 8 months after radiation therapy (RT). MATERIALS AND METHODS: The soft tissues of the pelvis of 24 women with advanced cervical carcinoma we re studied in 240 MR examinations scheduled before, three times during , and 7 weeks and 3, 6, 9, 12, and 18 months after RT. Two radiologist s visually evaluated the signal intensity (SI) of the subcutaneous fat , muscles, and presacral space (PS) on T1- and T2-weighted and short i nversion time inversion-recovery images. RESULTS: SI compatible with e dema appeared in the PS, pelvic muscles, and subcutaneous fat within 3 months after the end of RT and was observed in 23 (96%) of the 24 pat ients. During the observation period, the edema subsided. Eighteen mon ths after treatment, edema in the PS was seen in 12 (50%) of the 24 pa tients. CONCLUSION: The soft tissues of the female pelvis showed a cha racteristic pattern of varying edema after irradiation.