Pulmonary MRI in Clinical Trials

Until very recently, pulmonary MRI has played a limited clinical role for patients with chronic lung diseases such as COPD and asthma. The reasons for this are numerous and complex; yet, because of a concerted effort of a number of key research sites, pulmonary MRI endpoints are increasingly being used as research tools and biomarkers in clinical trials. A number of previous landmark studies focused on the development and validation of biomarkers to provide a better understanding of structural and functional information. These biomarkers are now being applied in emerging cohort studies to forge a better understanding of lung disease in cross-sectional and longitudinal evaluations and in the evaluation of localized treatment and regional treatment responses. Pulmonary MRI biomarker use has certainly been increasing, but gaps remain between the research bench and clinical workflows to patient care. Advancing pulmonary MRI toward clinical implementation will require the concerted, globally collaborative development and validation of clinically relevant biomarkers in multinational cohort studies and clinical trials.