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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Radiation and Health
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1526147
This article is part of the Research Topic Advances in Radiation Research and Applications: Biology, Environment and Medicine View all 3 articles

Preliminary study on the correlation between thyroid magnetic resonance parameters and radiation dose after radiotherapy for nasopharyngeal carcinoma

Provisionally accepted
Kuan Lu Kuan Lu 1Chenxia Zhou Chenxia Zhou 2*Jiaming Ren Jiaming Ren 1*Jialu Ni Jialu Ni 2*Weisen Yang Weisen Yang 1*Yeqing Wang Yeqing Wang 1*Dan Jin Dan Jin 1*Jianjun Qian Jianjun Qian 1*Yaqun Zhu Yaqun Zhu 1*Dai Shi Dai Shi 1*Wentao Hu Wentao Hu 3*Liang Xu Liang Xu 1*
  • 1 Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China
  • 2 Soochow University Medical College, Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, China
  • 3 State Key Laboratory of Radiation Medicine and Protection, Soochow University, Suzhou, Liaoning Province, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Hypothyroidism is a common sequela after radiotherapy for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has gained prominence in thyroid imaging, leveraging its non-ionizing radiation, high spatial resolution, multiparameter and multidirectional imaging. Few previous studies have investigated the evaluation of radiation-induced thyroid injury by MRI. In this study, we collected the MRI and radiotherapy data of 32 patients who were first diagnosed with nasopharyngeal carcinoma in our hospital from April 2015 to April 2024 and underwent radiotherapy. The width, thickness and volume of the thyroid decreased gradually before, during and 6 and 12 months after radiotherapy. They were negatively correlated with the mean thyroid dose and V50 (P < 0.05), but were not significantly correlated with the maximum and minimum thyroid doses, V30 and V35 (P > 0.05). The T1WI relative signal intensity (RSI), T2WI RSI, and enhanced T1WI RSI of the thyroid gland gradually decreased from before radiotherapy to during radiotherapy and 6 months and 12 months after radiotherapy. The T1WI RSI, T2WI RSI, and enhanced T1WI RSI during radiotherapy and 6 months and 12 months after radiotherapy were negatively correlated with the mean radiation dose, V40, V45, and V50 of the thyroid gland (P < 0.05), but were not significantly correlated with the maximum radiation dose, minimum radiation dose, V30, and V35 of the thyroid gland or the radiation dose of the pituitary gland (P > 0.05). Therefore, quantitative MRI analysis can noninvasively and effectively show the changes in thyroid shape, size and signal intensity in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma before and after radiotherapy, which is crucial for early and accurate assessment of thyroid damage, enabling timely treatment to preserve thyroid function.

    Keywords: thyroid, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), nasopharyngeal carcinoma, radiation therapy, Dose

    Received: 11 Nov 2024; Accepted: 20 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Lu, Zhou, Ren, Ni, Yang, Wang, Jin, Qian, Zhu, Shi, Hu and Xu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Chenxia Zhou, Soochow University Medical College, Suzhou, 215123, Jiangsu Province, China
    Jiaming Ren, Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China
    Jialu Ni, Soochow University Medical College, Suzhou, 215123, Jiangsu Province, China
    Weisen Yang, Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China
    Yeqing Wang, Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China
    Dan Jin, Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China
    Jianjun Qian, Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China
    Yaqun Zhu, Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China
    Dai Shi, Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China
    Wentao Hu, State Key Laboratory of Radiation Medicine and Protection, Soochow University, Suzhou, 215123, Liaoning Province, China
    Liang Xu, Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China

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