Much Wider Use of M.R.I.’s Urged for Breast Exam

[DeepModem Mom]

Source: New York Times

Much Wider Use of M.R.I.’s Urged for Breast Exam
By DENISE GRADY
Published: March 28, 2007

Two reports being published today call for greatly expanded use of M.R.I. scans in women who have breast cancer or are at high risk for it.

The recommendations do not apply to most healthy women, who have only an average risk of developing the disease.

Even so, the new advice could add a million or more women a year to those who need breast magnetic resonance imaging — a demand that radiologists are not yet equipped to meet, researchers say. The scans require special equipment, software and trained radiologists to read the results, and may not be available outside big cities.

Breast M.R.I. costs $1,000 to $2,000, and sometimes more — 10 times the cost of mammography — so a million more scans a year would cost at least $1 billion. It is sometimes covered by insurance and Medicare, sometimes not.

One report is a set of new guidelines for using M.R.I. in women at high risk for breast cancer, and the other is a study in The New England Journal of Medicine showing that in women who have newly diagnosed cancer in one breast, M.R.I. can find tumors in the other breast that mammograms miss....

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/28/health/28mri.html?hp

[Up2Late]

1. Let me guess, does one of Bush's buddies own a big MRI builder?

I know it's cynical, but who didn't think of that?

[Tesha]

2. I'm sorry, but you're wrong.

> Let me guess, does one of Bush's buddies own a big MRI builder?
> I know it's cynical, but who didn't think of that?

I'm sorry, but you're wrong. The evidence is very clear here
that the three-dimensional results provided by MRI can be far
better at detecting breast cancer than either physical exam-
ination or X-ray-based mammography.

And the MRI doesn't involve any use of ionizing radiation
so the risk of *INDUCING* cancer is much lower. Right now,
the recommendation is limited to women at "high risk",
but it would be a good thing if it could be done more
broadly.

Tesha

[mainer]

3. plus MRI's don't hurt like hell

I dread going in for a mammogram because it's so painful. I wish we could all opt for some newer, cheaper form of MRI instead.

[Tesha]

6. Some people do have problems with claustraphobia, though.

Some people do have problems with claustraphobia, though.
See reply #4!

Perhaps the Breast MRI market will grow sufficiently large
that dedicated machines will be developed so that there's
no need to put your entire body in a teeny plastic tunnel
just so they can image one boob.

Tesha

[daleo]

9. I heard about 10% false positives today

So that could be a problem. These invasive procedures (the biopsies and surgeries from false positives for example) can cause harms, and sometimes the overall harms and benefits are quite equal.

[A Brand New World]

4. No Way! Give me a mammogram anyday. I had an MRI a

few years ago for a herniated disk/pinched nerve in my neck. It was one of the most awful experiences of my life. I'm claustrophobic though.

[DeepModem Mom]

7. This recommendation is only for a certain category of women...

and for them, it can be a life-saver. An MRI can better detect cancer, for example, in a young woman with dense breasts, who already has a diagnosis of pre-cancerous DCIS.

[OhioChick]

5. I can't even get my insurance

to cover a Physical Therapy appt. and have to appeal and make at least a half dozen calls. There isn't a chance in hell that they'd pay for an MRI.

However, it's great for those with insurance that will pay for one.

[BluePatriot]

8. Yeah, try getting insurance to cover it (nt)