Computed tomography texture analysis for assessment of chemotherapy response of Hodgkin lymphoma

The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that computed tomography texture analysis (CTTA) is accurate for response assessment of Hodgkin lymphoma (HL). A total of 100 patients with HL were identified. CTTA in baseline and interim staging was performed generating volume of interests in lymphoma tissue from which CTTA features including 1st, 2nd, and higher order textural features were extracted. Baseline and interim 2-deoxy-fluor-glucose positron emission tomography results were used to determine therapy response and compared to CTTA in terms of patient outcome. At interim, 1st-order features yielded a significant drop (e.g., entropy of heterogeneity, P = .01) or a significant rise (deviation, P < .001), whereas 2nd and higher order features decreased (e.g., entropy of co-occurrence matrix, P < .001). Patients achieving complete remission at end of treatment had a significantly lower entropy of heterogeneity at baseline and interim compared to patients achieving partial remission (P < .05). CT textural features change in parallel to metabolic therapy response, and are therefore a feasible diagnostic tool for a more accurate response assessment of HL.