LiverMultiscan with MRI – replacing liver biopsy

• Research type

  Research Study

• Full title

  LiverMultiscan with MRI – replacing liver biopsy

• IRAS ID

  140543

• Contact name

  Gideon Hirschfield

• Contact email

  g.hirschfield@bham.ac.uk

• Research summary

  Chronic liver disease is a major public health issue in the UK and worldwide. Assessing liver disease includes finding out how much scaring (known as fibrosis) there is in the liver. Current blood tests and scans have limitations in assessing early fibrosis. The current standard for assessing liver fibrosis is with a biopsy. This is uncomfortable and it carries a risk of serious complications. The risks preclude repeated assessment with biopsy to track the progression of liver disease over time.

  MRI scans use magnets to make detailed images of the body. There is no radiation. This project will investigate a new type of MRI scan called LiverMultiscan. LiverMultiscan has been developed by Perspectum Diagnostics, an Oxford University spin out company. Preliminary data (Banerjee, JHepatol(2013)) suggests LiverMultiscan can assess fibrosis in the liver as accurately as a biopsy without the risks.

  Comprehensive Assessment of the Liver with MRI (CALM)
  Patients booked for a liver biopsy as part of their care will be invited to have a LiverMultiscan. We will compare data on fibrosis, fat and iron with the current gold standard, which is liver biopsy. Participants will undergo blood tests and a quick and painless ultrasound examination called fibroscan.

  Longitudinal Assessment with MRI in PSC (LAMP)
  To investigate the ability of LiverMultiscan to monitor change there will be a sub set of participants with autoimmune liver diseases such as primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) or related conditions. We will investigate whether combining LiverMultiscan with an existing technique called MRCP will give useful information in the monitoring of PSC or related conditions. These patients do not require a liver biopsy but will have bloods and a fibroscan.

  We will also invite healthy volunteers to have a LiverMultiscan, fibroscan and blood tests to allow development of the technique at the study sites.

• REC name

  West Midlands - Black Country Research Ethics Committee

• REC reference

  14/WM/0010

• Date of REC Opinion

  9 Jan 2014

• REC opinion

  Favourable Opinion