B 0 maps highly accentuate spiculations at the tumor margin

Introduction: To increase breast MRI specificity, [1,2] better assessment of lesion morphology is needed. This is especially true for differential diagnosis of fibro-adenomas, which present with DCE curves similar to those of malignant lesions. Furthermore, the smaller the lesion, the more difficult it is to assess its morphology. Yet, it is these small lesions where high specificity is paramount, as a larger proportion of small lesions is diagnosed as benign, than is the case with larger lesions. Using echo-planar spectroscopic imaging (EPSI), we produced high spatial resolution maps of the B0 field. The local B0 changes at magnetic susceptibility interfaces, e.g. at fat-water interfaces or micro-calcification sites. B0 is also shifted in regions with high blood vessel density, hypoxia, or differential accumulation of certain proteins. B0 variations can thus be used to assess lesion morphology, or as markers for malignancy. We report B0 maps that are highly sensitive to fat-water boundaries and that accentuate spiculations at the lesion margin. Thus B0 field mapping can be used as diagnostic imaging that supplements current clinical imaging, especially for morphologic assessment of small lesions with malignant-type DCE uptake curves.