The value of synthetic MRI for quantitative analysis in the diagnosis of cervical lymph node metastasis in thyroid cancer.

Background: Preoperative effective assessment of cervical lymph node metastasis in thyroid cancer plays an important role in formulating the surgical plan.

Purpose: To investigate the significance of synthetic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for quantitatively analyzing cervical lymph node metastasis in thyroid cancer.

Material and methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on 30 patients with thyroid cancer, consisting of 19 thyroid cancer nodules, 45 metastatic lymph nodes, and 47 non-metastatic lymph nodes. Regions of interest (ROIs) for each type of nodule were manually delineated using a workstation. Quantitative parameters, such as T1, T2, and proton density (PD) values, were automatically extracted from synthetic MRI scans. Statistical tests and regression analysis were performed to assess differences and correlations among the quantitative parameters.

Results: There were no significant differences in the quantitative parameter values between the primary tumor and metastatic lymph node tissues (P > 0.05). However, significant differences were observed in the quantitative parameters between the primary tumor and non-metastatic lymph node tissues and between the metastatic and non-metastatic lymph node tissues (P < 0.05). The diagnostic accuracy for cervical lymph node metastasis in thyroid cancer was 94.4% for the T1 and T2 combined index, 91.9% for T₂, 86.8% for T1, and 71.7% for PD values.

Conclusion: The application of quantitative parameters from synthetic MRI can assist clinicians in accurately planning surgical interventions for thyroid cancer patients before surgery.