Diffusion MRI for following tumor modifications after neoadjuvant radiotherapy.

Neoadjuvant radiotherapy (NeoRT) improves tumor local control and tumor resection in many
cancers. The timing between the end of the NeoRT and surgery is driven by the occurrence of side effects or the tumor downsizing. Some studies demonstrated that the timing of surgery and the RT schedule could influence tumor dissemination and subsequently patient overall survival. We demonstrated the impact of NeoRT on metastatic spreading in a Scid mice model. After an irradiation of 2x5gy, we show more metastasis in the lung when the mice are operated at day 4 compared to day 11. Here, our aim is to evaluate with functional MRI (fMRI) the impact of the radiation treatment on the tumor microenvironment and subsequently to identify non-invasive markers helping to determine the best timing to perform surgery for avoiding tumor spreading.