MRI/Breast Cancer Test for Women with Implants

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) can make it easier for doctors to detect breast cancer in its early stages in women with implants and dense breast tissue. An MRI gives a three-dimensional image of the breast, which allows a physician to see the detailed anatomy, down to the arteries and veins.

The scan also provides a clearer picture for women with dense breast tissue, which is made up of less fat and more glands and ligaments, and shows up as a white area on a mammogram. Tumors also show up as white areas on the film, so the MRI technology can prevent a potentially devastating mis diagnosis.

A three-year research study, conducted at 17 different sites throughout the U.S., Canada and Germany, of more than 1,000 women, all with suspicious lesions on their mammograms, found that MRI was twice as effective as a regular mammogram in detecting tumors in these women.

About Breast Cancer
More than one million women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year worldwide resulting in more than 400,000 deaths. Breast cancer ranks second as a cause of cancer death in women after lung cancer. As a result, breast cancer is one of the most intensively researched forms of cancer. Suppressing hormone production and blocking hormone receptors are two tried-and-proven strategies in the battle against cancer.