Portal
Home
Calendar
Gallery
FAQ
Search
Register
Log inBreast MRIs delay cancer treatment by weeks: study
Breast MRIs delay cancer treatment by weeks: study
by Outspoken on Sat Sep 06, 2008 8:50 pm
Breast MRIs delay cancer treatment by weeks: study
By Julie Steenhuysen
Reuters News Service
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Women with newly diagnosed breast cancer who get an MRI scan wait about three weeks longer before their surgery and are far more likely to get a mastectomy than women who have only a mammogram, U.S. researchers said on Saturday.
"MRI may not be as good as we think it is," said Dr. Richard Bleicher of the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia, who presented his findings at the American Society of Clinical Oncology's Breast Cancer Symposium in Washington.
"Those who received an MRI had a three-week delay in the start of their treatment," Bleicher said in a statement.
"In addition to the treatment delay, we're concerned that the well-documented false-positive rate with MRIs may be leading -- or misleading -- women into choosing mastectomies."
Bleicher said many women with newly diagnosed breast cancer, including younger women, are getting MRI exams in addition their mammograms. He and colleagues wanted to see if the tests had any impact on a woman's care.
They reviewed the records of 577 breast cancer patients who had been evaluated by a radiologist, pathologist and a surgical, radiation and medical oncologist. Of these patients, 130 had MRIs before surgery to remove their tumors, and 27.7 percent of these had a mastectomy. In the non-MRI group, 19.5 percent had a mastectomy.
After adjusting for tumor size, they said women who had gotten an MRI were 80 percent more likely to get a mastectomy.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080906/hl_nm/breast_mri_dc;_ylt=Aqg71GCOW2SJ7AsWB9Io5Ves0NUE
By Julie Steenhuysen
Reuters News Service
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Women with newly diagnosed breast cancer who get an MRI scan wait about three weeks longer before their surgery and are far more likely to get a mastectomy than women who have only a mammogram, U.S. researchers said on Saturday.
"MRI may not be as good as we think it is," said Dr. Richard Bleicher of the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia, who presented his findings at the American Society of Clinical Oncology's Breast Cancer Symposium in Washington.
"Those who received an MRI had a three-week delay in the start of their treatment," Bleicher said in a statement.
"In addition to the treatment delay, we're concerned that the well-documented false-positive rate with MRIs may be leading -- or misleading -- women into choosing mastectomies."
Bleicher said many women with newly diagnosed breast cancer, including younger women, are getting MRI exams in addition their mammograms. He and colleagues wanted to see if the tests had any impact on a woman's care.
They reviewed the records of 577 breast cancer patients who had been evaluated by a radiologist, pathologist and a surgical, radiation and medical oncologist. Of these patients, 130 had MRIs before surgery to remove their tumors, and 27.7 percent of these had a mastectomy. In the non-MRI group, 19.5 percent had a mastectomy.
After adjusting for tumor size, they said women who had gotten an MRI were 80 percent more likely to get a mastectomy.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080906/hl_nm/breast_mri_dc;_ylt=Aqg71GCOW2SJ7AsWB9Io5Ves0NUE
"Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and charm and gaiety to life and to everything."
Plato (427-347 BC)
Plato (427-347 BC)
