Long-term follow-up of patients with primary amyloidosis with MRI

The effect of chemotherapy on subjects with primary amyloidosis (AL-amyloidosis) were studied with MRI in five patients. The MRI was performed every 3-5 months for 23-60 months, and the T1 and T2 relaxation times were determined in liver and subcutaneous fat. In the patients as a whole T1 was significantly prolonged, whereas T2 was within normal range. On follow-up with repeated MRI increasing T1 values could be measured in progressive disease (one patient) whereas decreasing T1 values seemed to parallel clinical improvements in four patients. The effect of different treatment schedules in AL-amyloidosis may be evaluated with MRI and the amount of amyloid deposits may be quantified. (orig.)