Can transrectal prostate ultrasound compete with multiparametric MRI in the detection of clinically significant prostate cancer?

Alistair D R Grey; Martin J Connor; Joseph Tam; Tillmann Loch

doi:10.21037/tau.2020.02.26

Can transrectal prostate ultrasound compete with multiparametric MRI in the detection of clinically significant prostate cancer?

Transl Androl Urol. 2020 Jun;9(3):1492-1500. doi: 10.21037/tau.2020.02.26.

Authors

Alistair D R Grey^{1

2

3

4}, Martin J Connor¹, Joseph Tam¹, Tillmann Loch⁵

Affiliations

¹ Imperial Prostate, Department of Surgery and Cancer, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK.
² Division of Surgical and Interventional Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University College London, London, UK.
³ Department of Urology, Barts and The Royal London Hospitals, London, UK.
⁴ Department of Urology, University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK.
⁵ Department of Urology Diakonissenkrankenhaus, Flensburg, University Teaching Hospital of Christian-Albrechts-Universität Kiel, Flensburg, Germany.

Abstract

We consider the current and future role of transrectal ultrasound imaging in the diagnosis of prostate cancer, with a particular focus on the pre-biopsy localization and targeting role that multiparametric MRI (mpMRI) has come to occupy for some men in recent years. We draw a distinction between transrectal ultrasound (TRUS) used only as a means of distributing zonal biopsies with its employment as a means for identifying and targeting sonographically abnormal lesions. The role of AI in lesion identification and targeting will be reviewed. Comparisons of cost and availability, frequency of contraindications and diagnostic accuracy between these two imaging modalities will be drawn.

Keywords: Prostate cancer; artificial neural network analysis; multiparametric MRI (mpMRI); multiparametric ultrasound; transrectal ultrasound (TRUS).

Publication types

Review