BREAST MR-IMAGING FOR CANCER-DETECTION AND IMPLANT EVALUATION POTENTIAL PITFALLS

Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging of the breast is currently used for ev aluation of both parenchymal disease and silicone gel implants. MR ima ging has the potential to address questions raised or unanswered with traditional diagnostic imaging methods. However, lesion specificity an d cancer sensitivity depend on multiple technical factors (ie, imaging parameters and contrast agent delivery) and biologic factors (ie, the menstrual status of the patient and the vascularity of the lesion), A lthough diagnostic criteria for parenchymal disease have been reported , overlap of malignant and benign enhancement profiles occurs, The acc uracy of implant evaluation depends on the imaging parameters and know ledge of the implant type and surgical history, In addition, individua l investigative imaging methods are diverse, causing difficulty in pro tocol development for the practicing radiologist. An awareness of the problematic factors in breast MR imaging will improve diagnostic accur acy and allow understanding of the limitations of the modality and ind ividual patient examinations.