Focal liver lesions detection and characterization: The advantages of gadoxetic acid-enhanced liver MRI

Figure 4 Imaging features of a small hepatocellular carcinoma. The lesion (white arrow), located in the fifth segment of right hepatic lobe, is detectable in the arterial and hepatobiliary phase. It has hypervascular appearance in arterial phase (A), without evident wash-out in the portal phase (B). The lesion is hypointense in the hepatobiliary phase (C). As reported in literature, the low or absence of gadolinium ethoxybenzhyl diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid or gadoxetic acid uptake could precede the decrease of portal vascularization in malignant differentiation.