Source: www.allheadlinenews.com
Author: David Goodhue

A combination of a basic magnetic resonance imaging, or MRI, test and breathing oxygen may determine the best course for treating some cancer patients, University of Texas, Southwestern researchers said.

Researchers have demonstrated before that the amount of oxygen present in a tumor can be a predictor in its response to treatment. Tumors with little oxygen typically grow stronger and are resistant to chemotherapy and radiation. But the only way to measure the oxygen level in tumors was to insert a large needle directly into the growth.

Dr. Ralph Mason, a professor of radiology at the University of Texas, Southwestern, said a technique known as a blood oxygen level dependent, or BOLD, MRI, can detect oxygen levels in tumors noninvasively. The patient only has to breathe oxygen when undergoing the MRI, according to a UT Southwestern press release.

“The patient simply inhales pure oxygen, which them circulated through the bloodstream, including to the tumors,” Mason said in a statement.

A report of Mason and his colleagues’ research will appear in a future edition of Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.

BOLD MRIs are not new to the medical profession. They have been used extensively in studying brain function. Doctors at UT Southwestern have begun using them to treat patients with cervical, prostate and head and neck cancers.