MRI Changes Breast Cancer Treatment Choice; Increases Time To Treatment

More than a quarter of breast cancer patients who had an MRI examination before their initial surgical treatment had their treatment change, according to a study out of Yale University School of Medicine.

The study included 110 who had an MRI examination before treatment and 374 who did not undergo an MRI examination. "MRI prompted biopsy of 70 sites in 44 patients, said Carol Lee, MD, an author of the study, now at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in NY. Sixteen additional sites of cancer were found in 13 (12%) women, she said.

Surgical treatment was changed in 31 (28%) cases, she added. Fifteen patients had mastectomy rather than lumpectomy. Six had more extensive lumpectomy and three had treatment for cancer that was detected in the opposite breast.

source:American Roentgen Ray Society