The aim of the present study was to evaluate the utility of diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DWI) in the diagnosis of common renal tumors. Conventional magnetic resonance imaging and DWI were performed on 85 patients with renal lesions (54 renal carcinoma and 31 renal angiomyolipoma cases). The apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values in each case at b=800 sec/mm2 were measured in the ADC maps using a statistical software package. The 54 cases of renal cell carcinoma showed a high signal intensity in the parenchyma, and the 31 renal angiomyolipoma cases showed a well-defined mixed signal intensity on DWI. The soft-tissue component showed a high signal intensity and the fat tissue showed a low signal intensity on DWI. When the b-value was set to 800 sec/mm2, the mean ADC was significantly lower in the renal carcinoma cases than in the renal angiomyolipoma cases. In conclusion, the measurement of ADC on DWI can reveal the structure of renal tumors, which is beneficial in diagnosing and determining the prognosis of benign and malignant renal tumors.
Keywords: apparent diffusion coefficient; diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging; renal angiomyolipoma; renal cell carcinoma.