What to tell a patient about a Breast MRI examination? What EUSOBI recommends

Much information is available for patients about breast MRI examinations that their physicians are recommending. Members of the European Society of Breast Imaging (EUSOBI) has prepared a concise yet detailed paper published in European Radiology summarizing information for referring physicians and their patients about the procedure.

The paper, which was reviewed by Europa Donna – The European Breast Cancer Coalition to ensure that it can be easily understood by patients themselves, incorporates 17 notes and answers to five frequently asked questions.  It is the second of a series of recommendations for women’s information, the first of which focused on mammography, and was written by authors representing nine countries in Europe.

“Women’s information is important not only for patient awareness about advantages and disadvantages of breast MRI, but also to be prepared for the examination,” they wrote. “Patients need to be aware of the possible benefits and risks associated with breast MRI and of potential further investigations prompted by this exam. Moreover, technical quality of breast MRI is dependent on patient compliance,”

Subjects include a list of indications to order a breast MRI exam, precautions and contraindications, scheduling, and techniques and procedures used. It explains BI-RADS categories and what the content of the report will contain. The sensitivity of breast MRI to detect cancer is discussed in the context of screening for high risk patients, and for staging and treatment planning when cancer is identified. It even discusses the use of breast MRI for patients who have implants.

Radiographers and radiologic technologists may also find this paper useful for discussions with the patients they image. It may be accessed and downloaded free of charge by clicking here.

REFERENCE

  1. Mann RM, Balleyguier C, Baltzer PA, et al. Breast MRI: EUSOBI recommendations for women’s information. 2015 Eur Radiol. 25;12: 3669-3678.
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