Clinical Research Directory

Cardiac Magnetic Resonance for Diagnosis, Treatment Guidance and Prognosis of Cardiac Masses (CMR)

The goal of this observational study is to explore the diagnostic accuracy, treatment-guiding value, and prognostic predictive utility of cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) in patients with suspected or confirmed cardiac masses. Cardiac masses include neoplastic (primary tumors, secondary metastases) and non-neoplastic (thrombi, pericardial cysts, inflammatory pseudotumors) lesions-primary tumors are extremely rare (incidence: 0.0017%-0.03%), with 75% benign (myxoma accounting for 40%-50%) and 25% malignant (predominantly angiosarcoma), while secondary metastases are 20-40 times more common. Non-neoplastic masses like thrombi are linked to atrial fibrillation and heart failure, with thromboembolism as a fatal complication. Due to non-specific symptoms (chest pain, dyspnea) and pathological heterogeneity, accurate lesion differentiation and outcome prediction remain clinical challenges. CMR serves as the "silver standard" for non-invasive assessment of cardiac masses, leveraging superior soft tissue resolution, multi-planar imaging, and multi-parameter tissue characterization (T1/T2 weighted imaging, FPP, LGE, T1/T2 mapping, ECV). Multicenter studies confirm its 98.4% overall diagnostic accuracy and 98.4% benign/malignant differentiation accuracy, with excellent consistency with histopathology (Cohen's Kappa = 0.88). However, existing research is mostly retrospective with small samples, lacking systematic validation of quantitative CMR indicators-gaps this study addresses. The main questions it aims to answer are: Does CMR (qualitative + quantitative indicators) accurately differentiate neoplastic/non-neoplastic and benign/malignant cardiac masses (gold standard: histopathology or long-term follow-up)? Can CMR features (size, margin, infiltration, enhancement pattern, T1/T2 values, ECV) guide treatment selection (surgical resection, interventional therapy, medical treatment, conservative follow-up)? Do specific CMR indicators independently predict long-term outcomes (all-cause mortality, recurrence, thromboembolism) in patients with cardiac masses? Participants will include patients who undergo CMR for suspected/confirmed cardiac masses Patients receiving routine CMR as part of clinical care will have their CMR images analyzed, treatment plans recorded, and be followed up for 3 years via outpatient visits, telephone, or electronic medical records (at 1, 3, 6, 12, 24, 36 months) to collect survival status, recurrence, cardiac function changes, and adverse events.

Non-Invasive Diagnosis and Monitoring of Cardiac Masses by Liquid Biopsy

This is a nonprofit, observational, prospective and retrospective,multicenter study in a population of young and adult patients ≥12 years with a diagnosis of a cardiac mass. The study will include both patients with masses of unknown pathological diagnosis and patients with a known histology of benign or malignant tumors. We predict a case-control allocation ratio of 1:1 between cardiac malignant tumors and benign lesions. Peripheral blood will be collected at participating centers during routine venipuncture,processed and then shipped for liquid biopsy ctDNA NGS analyses. If available, in malignant cases, matched tumor tissue samples collected as per clinical practice solid biopsies or surgery will be used for analyses. Longitudinal tracking through serial blood draws could be performed in selected cases of patients with cardiac malignancies who receive cancer treatment