Radiation-free whole-body MRI to track childhood cancer treatment
Advanced Imaging Tools to Assess Cancer Therapeutics in Pediatric
This project uses a radiation-free whole-body MRI approach to follow how children's cancers respond to treatment.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Stanford University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Stanford, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11210720 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If my child joins, they would receive whole-body diffusion-weighted MRI combined with a nanoparticle-enhanced T1-weighted MRI to show tumor biology and anatomy without radiation. The team will compare these MRI scans to the current standard FDG-PET/CT scans that use injected radioactive glucose. Imaging would be done before and during therapy to watch how tumors change over time. The goal is to reduce radiation exposure while improving the ability to see treatment response in children.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Children and adolescents with cancer who need imaging to stage disease or monitor treatment and who can safely undergo MRI scans would be the ideal candidates.
Not a fit: Patients with MRI-incompatible implants, severe claustrophobia, or tumors that are poorly visualized by diffusion MRI may not benefit from this approach.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could reduce children's exposure to medical radiation and allow earlier, clearer tracking of how tumors respond to therapy.
How similar studies have performed: Previous work shows diffusion-weighted MRI can detect tumors well, but using it to monitor treatment in children is relatively new and past comparisons with FDG-PET have been inconclusive.
Where this research is happening
Stanford, United States
- Stanford University — Stanford, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Daldrup-Link, Heike Elizabeth — Stanford University
- Study coordinator: Daldrup-Link, Heike Elizabeth
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.