We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies. Cookie Policy.

MedImaging

Download Mobile App
Recent News Radiography MRI Ultrasound Nuclear Medicine General/Advanced Imaging Imaging IT Industry News

MRI Helps Interpret Ambiguous Mammography Results

By MedImaging International staff writers
Posted on 13 Feb 2018
Print article
Image: Mammography (A) and MRI (B) reveal a suspicious finding is only mild background enhancement (Photo courtesy of MedUni).
Image: Mammography (A) and MRI (B) reveal a suspicious finding is only mild background enhancement (Photo courtesy of MedUni).
A new study shows that magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is the best choice for clarifying ambiguous mammography tests.

Researchers at the Medical University of Vienna (MedUni; Austria) and Diagnostikum Graz (Austria) conducted a retrospective study of 302 consecutive women (mean age 50 years) who underwent 3T breast MRI as an additional workup to conventional and clinical mammography findings. The aim of the study was to investigate diagnostic performance and incidental lesion yield when using MRI as a problem-solving tool. All images were read by experienced, board-certified radiologists, with the reference standard being histopathology or follow-up after two years.

The researchers also developed a multiparametric protocol, which allows the examination of up to four patients per hour. The results revealed 53 true-positive, 243 true-negative, 20 false-positive, and two false-negative breast MRI findings. In 16 (5.3%) of all patients, incidental MRI lesions were detected, 37.5% of which were found to be malignant. Breast composition and the imaging findings that had led to referral in the first place had no significant influence on the diagnostic performance of breast MRI. The study was published on January 2, 2018, in PLOS One.

"MRI clearly shows whether findings are benign or malignant. Not only was MRI able to definitively characterize ambiguous findings as either benign or malignant but, on top of this, we were able to detect additional, previously undiscovered, malignant tumors,” said lead author Claudio Spick, of MedUni Vienna. “MRI scans are therefore an ideal, non-invasive and equivalent alternative to painful breast biopsies; moreover, in around five percent of cases they identify previously undetected malignant tumors.”

While breast MRI provides a very high sensitivity and negative predictive value, particularly in non-calcified breast lesions, problem-solving definitions are not well defined, and the empirical evidence about specific indications, such as architectural distortions, is sparse.

Related Links:
Medical University of Vienna
Diagnostikum Graz

Gold Member
Solid State Kv/Dose Multi-Sensor
AGMS-DM+
Computed Tomography (CT) Scanner
Aquilion Serve SP
New
Breast Imaging Workstation
SecurView
New
Remote Controlled Digital Radiography and Fluoroscopy System
Eco Track-DRF - MARS 50/MARS50+/MARS 65/MARS 80

Print article

Channels

Nuclear Medicine

view channel
Image: The multi-spectral optoacoustic tomography (MSOT) machine generates images of biological tissues (Photo courtesy of University of Missouri)

New Imaging Technique Monitors Inflammation Disorders without Radiation Exposure

Imaging inflammation using traditional radiological techniques presents significant challenges, including radiation exposure, poor image quality, high costs, and invasive procedures. Now, new contrast... Read more

Imaging IT

view channel
Image: The new Medical Imaging Suite makes healthcare imaging data more accessible, interoperable and useful (Photo courtesy of Google Cloud)

New Google Cloud Medical Imaging Suite Makes Imaging Healthcare Data More Accessible

Medical imaging is a critical tool used to diagnose patients, and there are billions of medical images scanned globally each year. Imaging data accounts for about 90% of all healthcare data1 and, until... Read more