Sadhna Verma, MD, FSAR, presented “Prostate MRI for Dummies” during the 2023 Frontiers in Oncologic Prostate Care and Ablative Local Therapy symposium on November 10, 2023, in Chicago, Illinois.
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How to cite: Verma, Sadhna. “Prostate MRI for Dummies.” November, 2023. Accessed Sep 2025. https://grandroundsinurology.com/prostate-mri-for-dummies/
Prostate MRI for Dummies – Summary
Sadhna Verma, MD, FSAR, presents an overview of the use of multiparametric MRI in evaluating the prostate. Dr. Verma begins by reviewing the three elements of a multiparametric MRI in prostate cancer treatment: T2 Weighted Imaging (T2W), Diffusion Weighted Imaging (DWI), and Dynamic Contrast Enhanced (DCE) Imaging.
Dr. Verma presents examples of T1 and T2 Weighted (T2W) MRI images, which are used to illustrate the zonal anatomy of the prostate. She notes that T1 and T2 MRI is weak when it comes to identifying problems in the transition zone.
Dr. Verma then moves to Diffusion Weighted Imaging (DWI) to measure cell diffusion as a means of locating tumors. However, she notes that DWI is not very accurate for recently-biopsied patients.
Dr. Verma concludes by briefly touching on Dynamic Contrast Enhanced (DCE) Imaging to measure tumor vascularity, and how DCE combines with T2W and DWI to give each identified lesion a PI-RADS (Prostate Imaging Reporting and Data System) score. She emphasizes that a PI-RADS score should only be used in detection of clinically significant prostate cancer, and presents examples of how prostate cancer can be identified in peripheral zones, transition zones, and extra-prostatic locations through the use of multiparametric MRI.
Frontiers in Oncologic Prostate Care and Ablative Local Therapy (FOCAL) is an outstanding program on prostate imaging, transperineal interventions, and ablative treatments for prostate cancer and benign prostatic hyperplasia. Bringing together community-based, academic, and industry partners, FOCAL offers lectures by world-renowned faculty and hands-on training workshops on in-office transperineal interventions, fusion-guided prostate ablation and state-of-the-art BPH management with novel technologies.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sadhna Verma, MD, MBA, FSAR, is an Adjunct Professor-Affiliate of Radiology at the University of Cincinnati in Ohio. Dr. Verma established and continues to serve as the Director of the Prostate MRI Program at the University of Cincinnati and established the university’s CT imaging program for CT Urography and CT Enterography. Dr. Verma is the associate Chair of Quality and Performance Improvement at the Prostate Cancer Midwest Center of Excellence and the Director of the Prostate Cancer Imaging Program for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. She is an international expert in the fields of GI and GU Imaging.
Dr. Verma earned her medical degree from the University of Louisville in Kentucky. She then completed an internship in Internal Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania. Dr. Verma completed a residency in Diagnostic Radiology and a fellowship in Health Service and Outcomes Research at the University of Cincinnati and then completed a fellowship in Body Imaging/3D Imaging at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland. Dr. Verma earned her MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business in Illinois.
Dr. Verma is a member of the International Prostate MRI Working Group. She conducts local and national workshops to help train radiologists and inform clinicians and patients about this test. Dr. Verma has over 100 published articles and book chapters in her field.
