MRI reveals disease in "opposite" breast.

• Position: Magnetic resonance imaging - Brief article

Women with a recent diagnosis of cancer in one breast should have a magnetic resonance imaging screening of the opposite breast, concludes a multicenter study involving University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, researchers. The international research team found that MRI detected cancer in the opposite breast in 3.1% of those who recently had been diagnosed with cancer in one breast only. The cancers in the opposite breast were missed by previous mammography and clinical exam.

The study authors recommend MRI screening for women at high risk for breast cancer--those who already have the disease, have been diagnosed recently, or have a family history of breast cancer. "This study is pretty definitive evidence that the opposite breast needs to be evaluated with MRI, but no one is recommending that we give up mammography," states Etta Pisano, professor of radiology and biomedical engineering. "MRI screening is a very expensive tool that should be used judiciously for high-risk populations. The last thing we would want is for every woman to think she should get an MRI."

In addition, MRI does not detect calcifications, one of the earliest signs of breast cancer...