New Cancer Imaging Technique Could Provide Alternative to Nephrotoxic Contrast Dyes

A new MRI technique that detects glucose uptake could provide a safe and simple option for detecting cancer and assessing response to therapy. Because tumors consume more glucose than normal tissues, sensitizing an MRI scanner to glucose uptake caused colorectal tumors to appear as bright images on MRI scans of mice, researchers report in Nature Medicine. The new technique—glucose chemical exchange saturation transfer (glucoCEST)—allows the uptake of unlabeled glucose to be measured through the chemical exchange of protons between hydroxyl groups and water, and could potentially provide an alternative to nephrotoxic contrast mediums.