Purpose

Many human diseases are characterized by their ability to alter existing metabolic pathways and interrupt cellular processes. Cancer exploits the Warburg effect and utilizes greater glucose than normal cells and within this process uses anaerobic respiration, leading to increased conversion of pyruvate to lactate. This can be exploited by hyperpolarized imaging. Hyperpolarized 13C MRI imaging is an approach that utilizes a stable isotope of Carbon (13C) linked to pyruvate. MRI spectroscopy is used in conjunction with hyperpolarized 13C pyruvate in order to temporally detect pyruvate and its conversion to lactate in-vivo, in order to visualize downstream metabolic (glycolytic) activity secondary to the Warburg effect, which should be useful in detecting and characterizing tumors of various types. Hyperpolarized 13C pyruvate MR imaging has not been tested in most cancers. In this preliminary survey, we will test the hypothesis that hyperpolarized 13C pyruvate MR imaging can be used to image various cancers.

Conditions

Eligibility

Eligible Ages
Between 18 Years and 88 Years
Eligible Genders
All
Accepts Healthy Volunteers
No

Inclusion Criteria

Clinical tumor diagnosis Patients with pre-existing MR imaging appointments Must be able to undergo MR

Exclusion Criteria

No tumor diagnosis

Study Design

Phase
Phase 1/Phase 2
Study Type
Interventional
Allocation
N/A
Intervention Model
Single Group Assignment
Intervention Model Description
Participants will be evaluated pre and post hyperpolarized 13-C pyruvate injection for change in pyruvate signal compared to background.
Primary Purpose
Diagnostic
Masking
None (Open Label)

Arm Groups

ArmDescriptionAssigned Intervention
Experimental
Experimental
Participants will receive an injection of 250 mM of hyperpolarized 13-C pyruvate intravenously after standard of care imaging sequences are performed. Then participants will undergo HP-MR imaging.
  • Drug: Hyperpolarized 13C-Pyruvate
    Imaging tumors pre and post administration of hyperpolarized 13-C pyruvate injection.

Recruiting Locations

University of Maryland Medical Center
Baltimore, Maryland 21201
Contact:
Rosy Njonkou, MA
443-365-0701
rnjonkou@som.umaryland.edu

More Details

Status
Recruiting
Sponsor
University of Maryland, Baltimore

Study Contact

Detailed Description

Most cancers exhibit the Warburg effect, which involves synthesis of lactate via glycolytic pathways. The present method of using 18F-FDG to image metabolic events only evaluates early glycolysis and does not investigate late glycolytic effects which can be examined by 13C pyruvate. The ability to detect cancer using 13C pyruvate has been shown using ovarian cancer models and in the prostate in humans, however its utility in other tumors needs clarification. Because cancers of various types affect metabolic pathways, it is necessary to improve imaging techniques to better investigate downstream metabolism. Many studies have shown that there are higher lactate levels in cancer tissue and higher levels of glycolysis. 13C pyruvate imaging takes advantage of these pathways by imaging the tumors while undergoing pyruvate to lactate conversion . From this modality, a three dimensional visualization of the tumor and metabolic products created by the pyruvate can be investigated.

Notice

Study information shown on this site is derived from ClinicalTrials.gov (a public registry operated by the National Institutes of Health). The listing of studies provided is not certain to be all studies for which you might be eligible. Furthermore, study eligibility requirements can be difficult to understand and may change over time, so it is wise to speak with your medical care provider and individual research study teams when making decisions related to participation.