VERIFICATION OF A TUMOR LESION OF INTRAPELVIC LYMPH NODES AFTER RADICAL PROSTATECTOMY. THE FIRST EXPERIENCE

Objective: to study the possibilities of transrectal ultrasound scan (TRUS) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in identifying and verifying a tumor lesion of intrapelvic lymph nodes (LN) in patients with biochemical recurrence after radical prostatectomy.

Subjects and methods. Metastatic tumor lesion of intrapelvic LNs was verified in 4 patients by transrectal ultrasound (US)-guided needle biopsies. All the patients underwent multi-parametric MRI studies and TRUS.

Results. The application of current MRI technologies (for qualitative and quantitative analysis of diffusion-weighted images and for postcontrast sequences) could detect and judge with confidence the metastatic lesion of intrapelvic LNs. TRUS permits clearly visualizing pathologically altered LNs, by taking into account their MRI pattern and verifying their tumor lesion by US-guided core needle biopsy.

Conclusion. The combined use of multi-parametric MRI and TRUS provides a means for diagnosing and verifying the tumor lesion of pelvic LNs in patients after prostatectomy.