CT Texture Analysis Predicts Survival of Patients with Metastatic Melanoma

New study provides insight into former President Jimmy Carter’s diagnosis and treatment

Leesburg, VA, August 24, 2015—A study published today in the September issue of the American Journal of Roentgenology finds that a combination of CT texture analysis of metastases, initial tumor size changes and serum biomarker lactate dehydrogenase is highly accurate in predicting the overall survival of patients with metastatic melanoma whose tumors fail to shrink significantly in response to bevacizumab therapy.

Former President Jimmy Carter announced last week that he has been diagnosed with metastatic melanoma and is receiving treatment similar to that of the patients in the study.

“According to news reports, President Carter has received at least one treatment with pembrolizumab, a drug similar to the bevacizumab used in our research,” said study coauthor Andrew D. Smith, associate professor of radiology at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. “Like bevacizumab, pembrolizumab activates the immune system to fight metastatic melanoma and is within the same broad family of laboratory-produced antibody therapies.”

The retrospective study included 42 patients who received bevacizumab therapy in the context of a randomized prospective phase II clinical trial. Target lesions on baseline and initial posttherapy contrast-enhanced CT examinations were evaluated by CT texture analysis before and after image filtering in patients with stable disease per Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST) on initial posttherapy images.

Founded in 1900, ARRS is the first and oldest radiology society in the United States, and is an international forum for progress in radiology. The Society's mission is to improve health through a community committed to advancing knowledge and skills in radiology. ARRS achieves its mission through an annual scientific and educational meeting, publication of the American Journal of Roentgenology (AJR) and InPractice magazine, topical symposia and webinars, and print and online educational materials. ARRS is located in Leesburg, VA.