WANG Rui-ting, DING Yu-qin, ZHONG Lian-ting, TANG Qi-ying, MAO Wei, DAI Chen-chen, ZENG Meng-su, ZHOU Jian-jun
Objective To investigate the CT and MRI features of primary renal neuroendocrine tumor (PRNET) in order to improve the diagnostic level of this rare disease. Methods Eight cases of PRNETs confirmed by pathology were retrospectively analyzed, of which, 4 cases underwent CT scan, 3 cases underwent MRI scan, and 1 case underwent both CT and MRI scans. The imaging characteristics were summarized and compared with pathology. Results Among the 8 PRNETs, 6 cases were well-differentiated, graded as G1 (n=3) and G2 (n=3), 2 cases were poorly-differentiated, graded as G3. Four lesions were located in the left kidney and the other four lesions were located in the right kidney, with an average diameter of (4.1±1.7) cm, ranging from 2.0 cm to 7.0 cm. There were 5 cases of round shape, 3 cases of irregular shape, 4 cases of cystic degeneration, 6 cases of hemorrhage, 2 cases of necrosis, and 0 case of calcification. One lesion was located at the upper pole of the kidney, and 7 cases were located near the renal hilum. One case of well-differentiated PRNETs showed lymph node metastasis, and 1 case of intravascular tumor thrombus, respectively. One case of the poorly-differentiated PRNETs demonstrated intravascular tumor thrombus, multiple metastases in the liver, bone and lymph nodes. All lesions showed slightly high attenuation on CT plain scan. Among the well-differentiated PRNETs, 3 cases showed iso-signal intensity (SI) and 1 case with high SI on T1WI. There was 1 case with iso-SI and 3 cases with slightly low SI on T2WI. All 4 lesions showed low SI on the ADC map. The well-differentiated PRENTs showed moderate and obvious enhancement, and the poorly-differentiated PRNETs showed mild to moderate enhancement after contrast enhancement, of which 7 cases showed continuous enhancement, and 1 case showed "wash-in and wash-out" enhancement. Conclusion The imaging findings of PRNETs have certain characteristics, usually located near the renal hilum, showing slightly high attenuation on plain CT scan, iso or slightly low SIs on T2WI. Well-differentiated PRNETs are prone to cystic degeneration, with moderate and obvious enhancement, while poorly-differentiated PRNETs are prone to hemorrhage and necrosis, and with mild and moderate enhancement.