Dear AuntMinnieEurope Member,
Much has been written and said this year about the global shortage of the important radioisotope molybdenum-99 (Mo-99). This week, an unexpected ray of hope came from Central Europe.
Researchers from Poland announced they have obtained a patent for the use of 3D printing technology to increase production of Mo-99 for medical imaging. This could have significant implications, they say. Find out more in the Molecular Imaging Community.
Can we get away with not using MRI contrast? Clinical staff often address this question when performing an MRI examination. Authors from Hannover Medical School, Germany, have looked at the issue in relation to juvenile idiopathic arthritis cases, and they published their findings on 6 December in European Radiology. Get the full story in our MRI Community.
As part of our news coverage of last week's RSNA meeting in Chicago, we conducted a video interview with Dr. Christiane Kuhl from Aachen, Germany, about the use of gadopiclenol as an alternative gadolinium-based MRI contrast agent. Don't miss this informative discussion with one of Europe's most respected investigators.
Also during the congress, the outcome of the "Images in Radiology" competition was unveiled, and MRI scans published by French and German teams were among the top prize winners. Get the full story in our article.
Another presentation at the RSNA looked at how susceptibility-weighted MRI reveals how patients who have recovered from COVID-19 can experience changes in their brains up to six months later. These patients had higher susceptibility values on MRI in their frontal lobes and brain stems compared with the healthy controls.
I'd like to thank everyone who submitted nominations for the EuroMinnies 2023 awards. We're now working our way through your submissions, and next week we'll announce the semifinal candidates. In two rounds of voting, the expert panel comprising editorial advisory board members and columnists will then vote for the finalists and winners.
Finally, I need to introduce you to two new members of our board: Emil Ljungberg, PhD, from Lund University, Sweden; and Dr. Mitja Rupreht, PhD, from Maribor, Slovenia. Prof. Elias Brountzos and Dr. Gábor Forrai, PhD, have left the board, and I'd like to thank them for all their help and support over many years.
![Examples of ultrasound findings and techniques. (A) Images in a 39-year-old male patient with a mass in the left thigh. The mass is heterogeneous on the B-mode US image (compared with the patient in D) and showed increased microvascularity (superb microvascular imaging [SMI]) and shear-wave elastography (SWE) values. Undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma was diagnosed at biopsy (with pleomorphic rhabdomyosarcoma in surgical specimen). (B) Images in an 18-year-old male patient with a mass in the left leg. The mass is hypoechoic on the B-mode image, with no other findings suggestive of malignancy. The lesion is in contact with the cortex of the tibia, which is slightly irregular. CT revealed a doubtful anteromedial tibial erosion. The microvascular study demonstrated high vascularization, suggestive of malignancy. Periosteal Ewing sarcoma was diagnosed with both histologic and immunohistochemical confirmation. (C) Images in a 69-year-old female patient with a lump growing on the outside of the left leg. Multiple SWE examinations were performed (please note the high values obtained in the measurements, whereas the color map highlights the stiffness relative to adjacent tissues). SMI showed areas of increased vascularization to target for sampling. Undifferentiated spindle cell sarcoma was diagnosed at biopsy, with residual leiomyosarcoma in the surgical specimen after neoadjuvant therapy. (D) Images in a 56-year-old female patient with a mass in the right thigh. The mass is heterogeneous at both B-mode ultrasound (similar to patient A) and MRI (coronal T2-weighted spectral attenuated inversion recovery [SPAIR]; T1-weighted pre-contrast and postcontrast imaging), which even shows uptake after the administration of paramagnetic contrast material, which is traditionally suggestive of malignancy. Low values at SMI and elastography are suggestive of benignity. Spindle cell lipoma was diagnosed at biopsy, with atypical spindle cell lipomatous tumor in the surgical specimen.](https://img.auntminnieeurope.com/mindful/smg/workspaces/default/uploads/2026/08/images-radiol250278fig2.APCFLSvX6p.jpg?auto=format%2Ccompress&fit=crop&h=100&q=70&w=100)
![Examples of ultrasound findings and techniques. (A) Images in a 39-year-old male patient with a mass in the left thigh. The mass is heterogeneous on the B-mode US image (compared with the patient in D) and showed increased microvascularity (superb microvascular imaging [SMI]) and shear-wave elastography (SWE) values. Undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma was diagnosed at biopsy (with pleomorphic rhabdomyosarcoma in surgical specimen). (B) Images in an 18-year-old male patient with a mass in the left leg. The mass is hypoechoic on the B-mode image, with no other findings suggestive of malignancy. The lesion is in contact with the cortex of the tibia, which is slightly irregular. CT revealed a doubtful anteromedial tibial erosion. The microvascular study demonstrated high vascularization, suggestive of malignancy. Periosteal Ewing sarcoma was diagnosed with both histologic and immunohistochemical confirmation. (C) Images in a 69-year-old female patient with a lump growing on the outside of the left leg. Multiple SWE examinations were performed (please note the high values obtained in the measurements, whereas the color map highlights the stiffness relative to adjacent tissues). SMI showed areas of increased vascularization to target for sampling. Undifferentiated spindle cell sarcoma was diagnosed at biopsy, with residual leiomyosarcoma in the surgical specimen after neoadjuvant therapy. (D) Images in a 56-year-old female patient with a mass in the right thigh. The mass is heterogeneous at both B-mode ultrasound (similar to patient A) and MRI (coronal T2-weighted spectral attenuated inversion recovery [SPAIR]; T1-weighted pre-contrast and postcontrast imaging), which even shows uptake after the administration of paramagnetic contrast material, which is traditionally suggestive of malignancy. Low values at SMI and elastography are suggestive of benignity. Spindle cell lipoma was diagnosed at biopsy, with atypical spindle cell lipomatous tumor in the surgical specimen.](https://img.auntminnieeurope.com/mindful/smg/workspaces/default/uploads/2026/08/images-radiol250278fig2.APCFLSvX6p.jpg?auto=format%2Ccompress&dpr=2&fit=crop&h=167&q=70&w=250)
