Can a special MRI scan tell which kind of glioma a person has?
Original title: Intravoxel incoherent motion (IVIM) MRI for predicting IDH mutation status in adult diffuse glioma: a systematic review and diagnostic test accuracy meta-analysis.
How far along is this research?
- Lab cells
- Animals
- Review
- Tested in people
This looks across many earlier studies rather than running a new one.
This is a review of past studies, and the scan is not ready for regular use.
The short version
Researchers looked at whether one type of MRI scan can spot a key tumor gene change, and the answer is not yet.
What was studied. Researchers gathered 13 past studies on adults with a type of brain tumor called glioma: A tumor that starts in the glial cells, the support cells of the brain and spinal cord. Gliomas are given a grade from 1 to 4 describing how the tumor is expected to behave. See the glossary. They checked how well a special MRI scan could tell whether the tumor had a gene change called IDH gene change: A small change in a tumor's IDH gene. It is the first thing your team looks at when naming an adult glioma, and it can affect which treatments are offered. Your pathology report says whether your tumor has it. See the glossary.
What they found. One measure from the scan did the best job. It was tested in 7 studies with 499 patients. Two other measures from the scan did worse, and their results did not agree. The studies were done in different ways, so the proof was weak.
What this means, and what it doesn't
What it could mean: Someday, a scan like this might help doctors learn more about a tumor before surgery. For now, the tumor's gene type is still found by testing tumor tissue.
What it doesn't mean: This does not mean the scan is ready to use in everyday care. The researchers said the scan may be picking up the tumor's type or grade, not just the gene change. The studies need to be done the same way and tested again in new groups of people. This is not a treatment and not a cure.
Source: PubMed, September 14, 2026 · Read the original
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