HEMODYNAMIC EVALUATION OF CEREBRAL GLIOMAS USING XECT

The purpose of this study was to characterize regional blood flow (BF) in untreated cerebral gliomas (CG) using stable Xe-enhanced computed tomography (XeCT). XeCT of 38 patients with untreated CG were analyzed and compared with CT and magnetic resonance images (MRI) and histopat hological findings. Individual averaged BF values for tumour in 29 hig h grade gliomas (HGGs) and 9 low grade gliomas (LGGs) were intermediat e between averaged BF values for cortex and white matter in the non-tu mour bearing hemisphere. All averaged BF values for cyst and central n ecrosis were very low. In 27 HGGs, BF in tumour was relatively high in ring-enhancement lesions on CT and MRI, but was low even in viable tu mour centers showing no contrast enhancement. In the other 2 HGGs, BF was low in tumour center and relatively high in tumour periphery regar dless of homogeneous enhancement. In 5 HGGs, averaged BF value of the cortex outside surrounding oedema was higher than that of cortex in th e non-tumour bearing hemisphere. In LGGs, BF distribution in tumour wa s homogeneously low in 3 small-sized and heterogeneous in 6 large-size d lesions including moderately high and low BF regions. These differen ces in BF pattern between HGGs and LGGs on XeCT might be helpful in co nsidering to some extent the histopathology of untreated cerebral glio ma preoperatively.