MRI Evaluation of the Contralateral Breast in Women with Recently Diagnosed Breast Cancer

Up to 10% of women with a diagnosis of unilateral breast cancer have cancer in the contralateral breast, despite negative clinical and mammographic examinations. This study investigated the use of MRI examination of the contralateral breast in women with a diagnosis of unilateral breast cancer and negative clinical and mammographic examinations. MRI detected occult cancer in the contralateral breast in about 3% of these women. All of the cancers were early stage, without evidence of spread to the lymph nodes or beyond. MRI detected occult cancer in the contralateral breast in about 3% of women with a diagnosis of unilateral breast cancer and negative clinical and mammographic examinations. A woman with unilateral breast cancer has an increased risk of having cancer in the contralateral breast. 1 – 6 In the 1990s, the role of mammography in improving the detection of contralateral cancers at the time of the initial diagnosis of breast cancer was firmly established; as compared with clinical breast examination alone, mammography resulted in a 1 to 3% increase in the number of cancers detected. 7 – 9 Despite normal findings on clinical and mammographic examination of the contralateral breast at the time of the initial breast-cancer diagnosis, however, contralateral cancer was subsequently detected in up to 10% of women. 1 , . . .