Quantitative MRI of the Prostate with Age: T1 Relaxation, T2 Relaxation, Mean Diffusivity, and Volume

Motivation: T1 relaxation, T2 relaxation, mean diffusivity (MD) and volume can offer valuable information about prostate tissue remodeling that may occur with cancer and aging. Goal(s): These age relationships are relevant for identification of cancer thresholds, but also provide insight on unique prostate zone changes with age. Approach: 74 normal volunteers aged 19-69 years were scanned. Results: T1, T2, MD and volume in the peripheral zone showed a positive quadratic association with age being mainly flat and then increasing after 45 years. In contrast, there were no such T1/T2/MD versus age correlations in the transition zone, despite a marked increase of volume with aging. Impact: Quantitative T1/T2 relaxation and mean diffusivity demonstrate microstructural changes of the prostate, particularly in the peripheral zone and not the transition zone, with typical aging (19-69 years) which may provide a ‘normative’ benchmark for tumor identification.