Differentiation of Cardiac Masses by Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Purpose of the Review The purpose of this study is to review the utility of cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging in diagnosing and differentiating among different cardiac masses. Recent Findings Recent advances in tissue characterization have made CMR the noninvasive modality of choice in differentiating cardiac masses. Greater spatial resolution, sophisticated tissue characterization, and multiple imaging planes to assess intra-cavitary masses enable CMR to perform a "virtual biopsy" of the mass. Cardiac tumors are rare but reporting of cardiac masses on noninvasive testing as computed tomography (CT) or echocardiogram is common. Cardiac masses can widely range from a normal structure of the heart, also known as "pseudo-mass," to cardiac thrombus, to the benign and malignant primary and secondary tumors of the heart. CMR represents an advanced noninvasive method to differentiate between cardiac masses given its spatial and tissue characterization ability. It has become a key testing tool in the diagnostic algorithm of evaluating cardiac masses.