DKI showed higher specificity than did conventional diffusion-weighted imaging for assessment of benign and malignant breast lesions. Patients with grade 3 breast cancer or tumors with high expression of Ki-67 were associated with higher kurtosis and lower diffusivity coefficients; however, this association must be confirmed in prospective studies.

Diffusion-weighted MR imaging is feasible in the assessment of renal function, especially in the detection of early stage renal failure of CKD.

Purpose: To investigate the brain iron deposits in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and healthy age-matched controls using phase imaging. Materials and Methods:Twenty-six AD patients and 24 healthy controls were recruited. A three-dimensional highresolution, gradient-echo sequence was used to acquire phase data in the coronal plane. A high-pass filter was used to remove the phase variation caused by field inhomogeneity. The regions evaluated included the bilateral putamen, globus pallidus, and the head and body of the hippocampus.Results: Significantly lower phase values in both the basal ganglion and hippocampus were revealed in the AD group compared to the normal controls (P Ͻ 0.05). The phase value in the right side of the head of the hippocampus had a moderate positive correlation with the MMSE score (rϭ 0.603, P ϭ 0.000) and a negative correlation with the duration of the disease (r ϭ Ϫ0.677, P ϭ 0.013). Using Ϫ0.0972 radians as an optimal cutoff value, the sensitivity and specificity for differentiation between AD and normal controls reached 95.8 and 80.8%, respectively. Conclusion:Phase imaging proved to be a useful method for the differentiation between normal controls and AD patients. An investigation of the excessive accumulation of iron in the hippocampus may help us better understand the pathologic process and neuropsychological dysfunction of AD disease.

• CT spectral imaging may help to detect hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). • CT spectral imaging may help differentiate HCC from focal nodular hyperplasia. • Quantitative analysis of iodine concentration provides greater diagnostic confidence. • Treatment can be given with greater confidence.