Cryotherapy of skeletal neoplasms

The authors reviewed MR examinations in six patients with giant cell tumor or chondrosarcoma who had undergone surgical curettage and subsequent cryotherapy. In five cases, the authors found a zone of varying thickness extending beyond the surgical margins consistent with cryotherapy injury to medullary bone. This zone appeared dark or intermediate in intensity on T1-weighted images and bright on T2-weighted and short inversion recovery (STIR) images, suggesting tissue edema. In one case, this marginal zone grew for 3 months as the cryotherapy injury evolved. These findings should be expected after cryotherapy and should not be confused with recurrent tumor