What an MRI of the Adrenal Glands Can Detect. MRI can evaluate adrenal lesions in symptomatic and asymptomatic patients. Adrenal lesions, or pathological changes in the organ such as a tumor or neoplasm, may be seen as adrenal adenomas or adrenal masses on an MR image.
An MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) test helps distinguish between normal and abnormal tissue. In the case of adrenal cancer, an MRI may provide greater soft tissue contrast than a CT scan. This type of imaging helps doctors evaluate adrenal tumors to determine if they are likely to be benign or cancerous.
What are the complications of adrenal disorders? The adrenal glands and the hormones they control are important to many of your body's functions. Untreated disorders can have serious complications. Some of them may be life-threatening.
Chemical shift imaging (CSI) is the mainstay of MR evaluation of solid adrenal lesions. Chemical shift MRI relies on detecting intracellular lipid in an adenoma for accurate adenoma identification.
Imaging is used not only for local staging but also to differentiate between benign and malignant lesions. MRI is the preferred imaging modality for the evaluation of soft-tissue masses in clinical practice.
Cushing syndrome due to adrenal tumor is a form of Cushing syndrome. It occurs when a tumor of the adrenal gland releases excess amounts of the hormone cortisol.
The most common symptoms are fatigue, muscle weakness, loss of appetite, weight loss, and abdominal pain. Adrenal insufficiency can be caused by autoimmune disease or suddenly stopping steroid medicines used to treat other conditions, among other causes.
Surgeons often perform a procedure called an adrenalectomy to remove a benign adrenal tumor. They can often use a minimally invasive (laparoscopic) surgery for tumors in the adrenal gland. This procedure uses small cuts (incisions) instead of the large cut that's used in open surgery.
“Although the majority of these tumors are benign, around 30% of adrenal tumors greater than 4 cm are malignant - most represented by adrenal cortical carcinoma, and the survival rate for these patients is very poor unless detected early.”
Although the adrenal glands are essential for life, one gland can usually do the work of both. Doctors also remove the entire gland if you have a cancerous tumor called an adrenocortical carcinoma or if you have cancer that has spread to the adrenal gland from another part of the body.
Adrenal cancers (carcinomas) are very rare, and the exact number diagnosed in the United States each year is not known. It is probably around 200 per year. These cancers are much less common than benign adrenal tumors (adenomas), which are found fairly often among middle aged and elderly people.
The dye is injected into a vein in the arm, and may cause a cool sensation. As pictures are taken, you must hold very still, and in some cases, hold your breath up to 25 seconds. The technologist is always able to see and hear you during the exam. Your MRI will take about 45 minutes to complete.
The adrenal fatigue theory suggests that prolonged exposure to stress could drain the adrenals leading to a low cortisol state. The adrenal depletion would cause brain fog, low energy, depressive mood, salt and sweet cravings, lightheadedness, and other vague symptoms.
Humans cannot live without adrenal glands, so if both adrenal glands are removed (very rarely necessary), then the patient needs to take medications and supplements to provide the necessary hormones.
Most benign adrenal tumors cause no symptoms and don't need treatment. But sometimes these tumors secrete high levels of certain hormones that can cause complications. The most common hormones that can be over-secreted are aldosterone and cortisol from the cortex and adrenalin hormones from the medulla.
Symptoms of adrenal tumors depend on which type of tumor you have and where it is located. Common symptoms include a rise in blood pressure, unexplained weight gain or weakness, dramatically increased thirst or urination, or other symptoms.
While benign (non-cancerous) tumors in the adrenal gland are very common, cancers in or around this gland are very rare. They are found in only 1 or 3 per 1 million people. These tumors can give off too much cortisol or other hormones.
Benign and malignant tumors are generally visible on an MRI. There are a few exceptions to what can be seen, such as growth rates, but the differences between them are typically consistent.
Standard MRI can't see fluid that is moving, such as blood in an artery, and this creates "flow voids" that appear as black holes on the image. Contrast dye (gadolinium) injected into the bloodstream helps the computer "see" the arteries and veins.
Calcifications within a tumor are white on CT (Figure 3) and usually a signal void (black) on MRI. These may represent residual normal bone or tumor matrix. Calcified tumor matrix suggests a bone- or cartilage-forming tumor, such as a chondrosarcoma.