Diffusion-weighted imaging of the liver: Current applications

Figure 1 A 65-year-old man with metastatic tumor in the liver from colorectal carcinoma. A: T2-weighted imaging shows an obvious hyperintense lesion on segment VII (arrow); B: DWI (b-value of 800 s/mm²) shows hyperintensity; C: Apparent diffusion coefficient map also shows hyperintensity. This finding mimics that for hemangioma. DWI: Diffusion-weighted imaging.

Figure 2 A 45-year-old man with focal nodular hyperplasia. A: Hepatobiliary phase on Gd-EOB-DTPA-enhanced MRI shows mainly hyperintensity on the outer layer and hypointensity on the inner layer. These enhancement patterns are typical radiologic findings of focal nodular hyperplasia; B: DWI (b-value of 800 s/mm²) shows hyperintensity; C: ADC map shows heterogeneous hyperintensity. The ADC is 1.40 × 10^-3 mm²/s. Gd-EOB-DTPA-enhanced MRI is more useful for obtaining a precise diagnosis than DWI alone. MRI: Magnetic resonance imaging; DWI: Diffusion-weighted imaging; ADC: Apparent diffusion coefficient.