Grant: Operating Grant

Prostate cancer remains one of the most common cancers in North American males and second leading cause of cancer related deaths in men. It is estimated that this year 25,500 men will be diagnosed in Canada alone with upwards of 4,000 deaths. Owing to the widespread use of screening tests, many more less advanced, localized, lower risk prostate cancers are being detected. This prompted increased interest in focal therapy as an alternative to the traditional therapies of surgery and radiation therapy. However, the ultimate success of focal therapy relies on proper patient selection and adequate characterization of the tumour's location, extend and histological grade. We have shown that a combination of different Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) techniques have significantly better accuracy of prostate cancer diagnosis than either technique alone. We propose to further develop this MRI technology. Specifically, we will develop a technique called Magnetic Resonance Elastography (MRE). This technique allows non-invasive measurements of mechanical properties of tissue, and is often called "remote palpation". We believe that the combination of MRE and the MRI techniques we have developed so far will significantly improve prostate cancer diagnosis. In addition, we will develop a computer program capable of accurately predicting the tumour's location, volume and pathological grade based on the MRI/MRE measurements. The combination of the proposed MRI/MRE technology with this computer program will facilitate patient selection for focal prostate cancer therapy. We also propose to test the ability of this technology to predict outcome of the combined modality treatment.