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Magnetic resonance imaging, or MRI for short, provides detailed images of the inside of the body. It is an indispensable procedure for the diagnosis and treatment planning of many types of cancer, and it does not expose the body to radiation because it uses magnetic fields and low-energy radio waves. Pathological changes, such as tumors, can be clearly distinguished from healthy tissue in MRI images.

The element gadolinium provides the necessary contrast in MRI images; it is safely enclosed in the contrast agents within a so-called chelate molecule, much like a molecular cage. Through its magnetic properties, gadolinium interacts with water molecules in the body inside the MRI scanner. Certain tissues with a high water content thus appear brighter in the images, which creates contrast in the imaging.

Gadolinium-based contrast agents are used in just under half of all MRI scans. After the scan, these are excreted via the kidneys in the urine and end up in wastewater. There, gadolinium remains bound within its chelate cage in the long term. "Nevertheless, we see an urgent need to lay the foundations for new and sensitive analytical methods that will enable us to track gadolinium in the environment—not only from contrast agents but also from industrial processes," explains Leif Schröder, head of the Department of Translational Molecular Imaging at the DKFZ, who led the study.

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