Preoperative Prediction of CK19 Expression and Early Recurrence of Hepatocellular Carcinoma using T1 mapping on Gadoxetic acid-enhanced MRI

Cytokeratin 19 (CK19) is well acknowledged as a progenitor cell marker and tumor stem cell marker that plays an important role in promoting the malignant property of HCC. If the preoperative CK19 expression status in HCC can be accurately predicted noninvasively, it may provide important information for clinical decision-making. T1 mapping is useful for preoperative prediction of CK19 expression and early recurrence of HCC. The clinical-quantitative model combining alpha-fetoprotein and quantitative features showed good performance and robustness in predicting CK19 expression. T1 relaxation time on hepatobiliary phase was an independent predictor of CK19 expression and recurrence-free survival.