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New Generation of Contrast Agents Provides Hope for Enhanced Brain Tumor Diagnostics

May 03, 2004

In a pilot study of gadobenate dimeglumine (GD-BOPTA), the new contrast agent has yielded improved diagnostic imaging of brain tumors in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) compared to standard contrast media. A team of researchers headed by PD Dr. Marco Essig, Division of Radiology of the Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum (German Cancer Research Center, DKFZ), Professor Michael V. Knopp, Ohio State University, USA, and Professor Olav Jansen, Neuroradiology Department of Kiel University, have recently published the study in the journal Radiology.

The study included 27 patients suffering from secondary (metastatic) brain tumors or malignant gliomas - tumors originating from the protective and supportive tissue of the nervous system. An intraindividual comparison was conducted, i.e., the study participants were examined using both the new and a standard contrast agent. The researchers are now planning to extend their investigations to 250 patients in a multicenter study including further types of brain tumors. "If our data were to be confirmed in a larger study, patients could hope for a more exact diagnosis of brain tumors and hence better treatment and surgery planning," said Marco Essig envisioning the potential medical advances. About 8000 new cases of brain tumors are reported each year in Germany, approximately 2000 of which are gliomas.

The contrast medium GD-BOPTA is characterized by a weak binding to serum albumin. In MRI it therefore provides a stronger signal and better contrast than standard contrast agents. As a result, pathologically changed tissue can better be distinguished from healthy tissue. This facilitates significantly better recognition of brain tumors in MRI, in particular what are called satellites - tumors that have separated from the original tumor. These have been particularly difficult to visualize diagnostically up to now. Improved therapy planning could thus also help to reduce the relapse rate, i.e. the frequency of new tumor formation after treatment.

Contrast agents used in MRI belong, chemically speaking, to the group of gadolinium chelates, also called "rare earths", and are applied intravenously. These substances pass the blood-brain barrier only if it is pathologically changed such as in the vessels of tumors. The new contrast agent used in the study, gadobenate dimeglumine (GD-BOPTA), was approved for diagnostic use in the central nervous system in 2001. Originally developed for liver tumor diagnosis, it has also provided better information than standard contrast media in other tumors.

The task of the Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum in Heidelberg (German Cancer Research Center, DKFZ) is to systematically investigate the mechanisms of cancer development and to identify cancer risk factors. The results of this basic research are expected to lead to new approaches in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of cancer. The Center is financed to 90 percent by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research and to 10 percent by the State of Baden-Wuerttemberg. It is a member of the Helmholtz Association of National Research Centers (Helmholtz-Gemeinschaft Deutscher Forschungszentren e.V., HGF).

Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum