Prostate Cancer Extracapsular Extension in MRI
Extracapsular extension is the spreading of prostate cancer out of the prostatic capsule. Cancer begins when cells start to multiply out of control. Usually they form tumors (masses of tissue). Most cancers of the prostate are adenocarcinomas, cancers that arise in the glandular tissue of the prostate. Unlike most other cancers, however, the majority of prostate cancers grow slowly, doubling in size about once every 4 years. Many never metastasize to other parts of the body and may never need to be treated. Some tumors, however, are aggressive and can spread rapidly.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Prostate Cancer
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) reveals a cancerous prostate tumor. Images along the sagittal axial and coronal planes show the prostate and surrounding structures including the rectum and bladder. The images are situated within the context of the pelvic bone.
Prostate Cancer Stages
Cancer staging helps in estimating the patient’s prognosis and in deciding on treatment. If tests show the cancer is likely to have spread, imaging and other tests are done to see the extent of the cancer and to assign it a stage.
Stage 1: Cancer is confined to a small area of the prostate.
Stage 2: Cancer is confined to the prostate but has spread within it, patient had a high Gleason score, had a high PSA level, or can be felt.
Stage 3: Cancer has spread outside the prostate and may have spread to the seminal vesicles, but has not spread anywhere else.
Stage 4: Cancer has spread to nearby tissues (other than the seminal vesicles), or to the lymph nodes, or to distant sites in the body
Prostate Cancer Views
About 80-95% of all cases of prostate cancer are carcinomas that develop in the glandular tissue of the prostate.Most cases of prostatic adenocarcinoma grow more slowly than most other types of cancer. In fact, some prostate tumors grow so slowly that they never require treatment. Extracapsular extension refers to the point at which the prostate cancer cells have extended into, and possibly through, the prostate capsule (the outer lining of the prostate gland). The cancer cells may extend through parts of one or both lobes of the gland. Extracapsular extension does not mean the same thing as metastatic cancer.
