Radiomics to better characterize small renal masses.
Journal:
World journal of urology
Published Date:
Jan 26, 2021
Abstract
PURPOSE: Radiomics is a specific field of medical research that uses programmable recognition tools to extract objective information from standard images to combine with clinical data, with the aim of improving diagnostic, prognostic, and predictive accuracy beyond standard visual interpretation. We performed a narrative review of radiomic applications that may support improved characterization of small renal masses (SRM). The main focus of the review was to identify and discuss methods which may accurately differentiate benign from malignant renal masses, specifically between renal cell carcinoma (RCC) subtypes and from angiomyolipoma without visible fat (fat-poor AML) and oncocytoma. Furthermore, prediction of grade, sarcomatoid features, and gene mutations would be of importance in terms of potential clinical utility in prognostic stratification and selecting personalised patient management strategies.