First Advisor

Cory Wyatt

Date of Award

Spring 6-2025

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Biology and University Honors

Department

Biology

Language

English

Subjects

Pancreatic Cancer, MRI, Relaxation Times, MR Fingerprinting

Abstract

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a cancer that is detected in its later stages, causing its five-year survival rate of 2-9% (3). The majority of patients who develop PDAC unfortunately deal with a low survival rate due to the progression of the tumor in the body. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can assess the structure of the tissue within organs in the body. These scans can also be used in order to detect and diagnose tumors, allowing them to be a generator of cancer biomarkers (1). PDAC isn’t distinguishable on conventional images, as the pancreas will appear normal, allowing the tumor progress into later stages. The signal that the MRI uses is determined by MR relaxation times, which are T1, T2, and T1ρ. This study utilizes MR relaxation times to detect possible changes in tissues of patients at high risk for PDAC, including: pancreatitis, an IPMN, cystic lesions, or familial/genetic risk. The mean values from each category were compared with one another. From the results, it was noted that the values from each of the different categories varied and weren’t the same, significantly in the T1 values. They were observed to be in decreasing order from severity (pancreatitis → IPMN → cyst → familial/genetic). This suggests that relaxation times can be used to detect whether a patient is at risk of developing another condition. Further research is needed to determine if this can be used in the future to detect other conditions as well, such as PDAC.

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