Tumor Vascularity of Experimentally Induced VX2 Carcinoma in the Rabbit Thigh: Evaluation with Enhanced Power Doppler Sonography and DSA Correlated with Histopathologic Findings

Kim, Young Hoon; Han, Joon Koo; Chung, Jin Wook; Lee, Kyoung Ho; Kim, Se Hyung; Kim, Seog Joon; Choi, Byung Ihn; Chang, Kee Hyun

Abstract

PURPOSE
To describe findings of enhanced power Doppler sonography and DSA in experimentally induced VX2 carcinomas in rabbit thigh and to correlate the imaging findings with the histopathologic features.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
A total of 30 VX2 carcinomas were implanted in rabbit thigh, and after conventional and enhanced power Doppler sonography and DSA, histopathologic examination was performed. Enhanced power Doppler sonography and DSA, were used to determine the distribution pattern of tumor vascularity; to assess its grade and the percentage of a tumor area occupied by vessels, conventional and enhanced power Doppler sonography, as well as DSA, were used. The grade of necrosis and the development of fibrovascular stroma and capsule were histopathologically determined. The findings of power Doppler sonography were compared with those of DSA and the imaging features were correlated with the histopathologic features.
RESULTS
At enhanced power Doppler sonography, the signal was either avascular (n=9), peripheral (n=15) or diffuse (n=6), while at DSA, the corresponding totals were eight, fourteen and eight. There was statistically significant corelation between enhanced power Doppler sonography and DSA, both in their depiction of the distribution of patterns of tumor vascularity and as regards their findings of grade and percentage of vascular area. As determined by both conventional and enhanced power Doppler sonography, and by DSA, grade of necrosis and the development of fibrovascular stroma and a capsule correlated with grade and the percentage of vascular area.
CONCLUSION
Experimentally induced VX2 carcinomas in rabbit thigh demonstrated various patterns of tumor vascularity, and the findings of enhanced power Doppler sonography correlated with those of DSA. Tumor vascularity, as demonstrated by two imaging modalities, correlated closely with grade of necrosis and the development of fibrovascular stroma and a capsule, as revealed by histopathologic examination.