MRI could predict chemotherapy outcomes

Using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) could help predict chemotherapy outcomes for patients with breast cancer.

Researchers at the University of California San Francisco claim that the procedure can help to indicate a tumour's response to pre-surgical treatment earlier than is possible through clinical examination alone.

It has previously been shown that women who receive chemotherapy prior to surgery have a greater chance of avoiding a mastectomy.

This study enables doctors to more accurately predict whether this will be the case, by allowing for the analysis of blood vessel formation in tumours.

The discovery was made when researchers analysed data from the imaging component of a multicentre investigation into serial studies and their ability to predict therapeutic response.

Comparing the MRI and clinical assessment of 216 female patients between the age of 26 to 68 undergoing pre-surgery chemotherapy, it was found that MRI was more accurate in predicting response to treatment.

MRI has also been shown to be useful in identifying tumour malignancy in breast cancer patients.

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