A third of breast-cancer patients undergoing preoperative mammography and ultrasound would be more accurately imaged for tumor size with breast MRI, according to a study published online April 13 in the Journal of Surgical Oncology. 

Via Radiology, based in Seattle, is the first in the Pacific Northwest to offer a new type of MRI screening for breast cancer patients.

European researchers have reviewed a huge mammography dataset and found no association between screening mammography and a reduction in the incidence of advanced breast cancer. 

Testing for gene mutations beyond just BRCA1 and BRCA2 would indicate screening breast MRI and other proactive measures for many women who would not have been considered candidates for such measures going by family history alone, according to a large-sample study published online Dec. 21 in the Journal of the American College of Radiology.

A U.K. study based on a departmental audit has confirmed previous research suggesting that MRI-detected small enhancing masses and new small enhancing foci, including those smaller than 5 millimeters, should be considered suspicious in women at high risk for breast cancer.

A website offering information about dense breasts, Dense Breast Info, wants women to be aware of their services, even though they aren’t always the first result in an internet search about breast density. 

Intraoperative MRI for breast-tumor resection following presurgical MRI with the patient in the supine (“face up”) position can be used to effectively plan the extent of resection, detect residual tumor immediately after the first attempt at definitive lumpectomy and provide feedback to the surgeon within the surgical suite during a breast-conserving operation. 

Invasive breast cancers are more likely to be found through breast MRI screening rather than mammography in women with elevated risk factors, according to results of a study published online April 20 in the journal Radiology.