Article
Imaging Study Identifies Pre-Cancerous Changes in Breast Tissue
The technique, L-COSY, monitors biochemical changes in tissue and could improve the management of women at risk of breast cancer, such as those carrying mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2.
A magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) technique that monitors biochemical changes in tissue could improve the management of women at risk of breast cancer, according to a new study published online in the journal Radiology.
Many women face a higher risk of breast cancer due to the presence of BRCA gene mutations. A BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation carrier has approximately a 50% risk of developing breast cancer before the age of 50 years, and the cancer can develop within months of a negative screening by mammography. The risk is so significant that many women with BRCA mutations undergo prophylactic, or preventive mastectomies to avoid getting invasive cancer later in life.
For the new study, researchers assessed 2-D localized correlated spectroscopy (L-COSY) as a noninvasive means to identify biochemical changes associated with a very early stage of cancer development known as the pre-invasive state.
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Source: Radiological Society of North America
