COLORECTAL CANCER WITH LIVER METASTASIS AND TREATMENT WITH ANTI-ANGIOGENIC DRUGS: RESPONSE EVALUATION WITH DIFFUSION-WEIGHTED MRI

Colorectal cancer is the third most common malignancy and the third leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide. Recently, the introduction of novel drugs (anti- angiogenic drugs) has led to a significant improvement in the survival rates of patients with metastatic colorectal cancer. The RECIST (Response Evaluation Criteria for Solid Tu- mors) parameters cannot adequately detect important effects of treatment and response to the application of these new drugs. New radiologic methods, such as diffusion- weighted MRI, could help to assess the quality and quantity of the response more accu- rately. Diffusion-weighted MRI imaging is based on a technique sensitive to the Brownian motion of water molecules over short distances. This article describes our experience with this method in patients with liver metastasis from colorectal cancer after treatment with bevacizumab.