Development trends and knowledge framework in the application of magnetic resonance imaging in prostate cancer: a bibliometric analysis from 1984 to 2022

BACKGROUND: Prostate cancer (PCa) is the most common tumor of the male genitourinary system. With the development of imaging technology, the role of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the management of PCa is increasing. The present study summarizes research on the application of MRI in the field of PCa using bibliometric analysis and predicts future research hotspots. METHODS: Articles regarding the application of MRI in PCa between January 1, 1984 and June 30, 2022 were selected from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) on November 6, 2022. Microsoft Excel 2016 and the Bibliometrix Biblioshiny R-package software were used for data analysis and bibliometric indicator extraction. CiteSpace (version 6.1.R3) was used to visualize literature feature clustering, including co-occurrence analysis of countries, institutions, authors, references, and burst keywords analysis. RESULTS: A total of 10,230 articles were included in the study. Turkbey was the most prolific author. The USA was the most productive country and had strong partnerships with other countries. The most productive institution was Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Journal of Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Radiology were the most productive and highest impact factor (IF) journals in the field, respectively. Timeline views showed that “#1 multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging”, “#4 pi-rads”, and “#8 psma” were currently the latest research hotspots. Keywords burst analysis showed that “machine learning”, “psa density”, “multi parametric mri”, “deep learning”, and “artificial intelligence” were the most frequently used keywords in the past 3 years. CONCLUSIONS: MRI has a wide range of applications in PCa. The USA is the leading country in this field, with a concentration of highly productive and high-level institutions. Meanwhile, it can be projected that “deep learning”, “radiomics”, and “artificial intelligence” will be research hotspots in the future.