Significant advances have been made in understanding the role of
tumor angiogenesis and its influence on
tumor progression in
cancer. Based on this knowledge, a series of inhibitors of angiogenesis have been developed and evaluated in preclinical and clinical trials. Since detailed information of
tumor progression in response to
therapy is important to assess the efficacy of anti-
tumor treatment in vivo, noninvasive imaging techniques emerge more and more as important tools to monitor alterations in
tumor growth and vessel recruitment, as well as metastatic spread over time. So far, remarkable efforts have been made to improve the technical capability of these imaging modalities based on better resolution, as well as to implement multimodal approaches combining molecular with anatomical information. Advanced imaging techniques not only allow the detection and monitoring of
tumor development, but also facilitate a broad understanding of the cellular and molecular events that propagate
tumor angiogenesis, as well as those occurring in response to
therapy. This review provides an overview of different imaging techniques in preclinical settings of oncological research and discusses their potential impact on clinical translation. Imaging modalities will be presented that have been implemented to address key
biological issues by exploring
tumor angiogenic processes and evaluating antiangiogenic
therapy.