Objective: To report the MRI features of intracranial metastases of lung cancer.
Methods: A total of 858 patients with history of primary lung cancer suspicious of brain metastases was retrospectively reviewed with MRI.
Results: 1. Of the 858 patients, 393 (45.8%) had brain metastases on MRI. The primary tumor was lung adenocarcinoma in 117 (29.8%), small cell lung cancer in 110 (28.0%), squamous cell cancer in 52 (13.2%), adenosquamous cancer in 16 (4.1%), large cell carcinoma in 2 (0.5%) and carcinoid in 1 (0.3%). The histopathological types of the primary tumor were unknown in 95 (24.2%). 2. Meningeal metastasis was found in 19 patients with lung cancer. The primary tumor was of adenocarcinoma lung in 6, small cell lung cancer in 5, squamous cell carcinoma in 4 and the remaining 4 were of unknown histopathological type. 3. Edema around the lesion: in 120 cases, there was no obvious edema; the edema was slight in 98 cases, moderate in 70, serious in 86.
Conclusion: The brain metastasis of lung cancer is of common occurrence. MRI with enhancement is very helpful in the establishment of diagnosis.