Breast cancer diagnosis is more accurate and more comprehensive now with new magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technology at Martin Memorial Health Systems. The Sentinelle Breast MRI Coil from Sentinelle Hologic can more accurately identify and pinpoint hard to find breast lesions that may not be identified by conventional mammography or by ultrasound. The scope of this breast imaging and intervention technology is the first of its kind on the Treasure Coast.

 

“This is state-of-the-art technology,” says Todd Horkins, M.D., a radiologist with Martin Memorial who is a fellowship trained breast specialist. He also holds fellowship specialty training in musculoskeletal radiology. “Patient comfort is greatly improved over conventional methods and over other breast MRI machines. But more importantly it has the ability to identify certain difficult to see cancers that might escape self-exams, conventional mammography and/ or ultrasound.”

 

Once an abnormal lesion is identified, the three-dimensional (3-D) MRI images of the breast allow doctors to perform a targeted MRI-guided or an ultrasound-guided biopsy of the suspicious lesion.

 

“The accuracy of the 3-D targeted biopsy process, once the cancer is identified, is also greatly enhanced,” says Dr. Horkins.

Mary Snow-Wilkinson, a customer service representative with Martin Memorial, recently underwent a bilateral mastectomy when invasive lobular cancer was identified by Dr. Horkins during testing of the new equipment.

 

“I had just had a breast exam at my gynecologist’s office and I have had yearly mammograms and nothing ever showed up until I volunteered to help test the new equipment,” Wilkinson says. “It was the MRI that saved my life.”

 

Patients lay on their stomach during the MRI. “It was pretty easy,” says Wilkinson. “There is hardly any squeezing of breast tissue as there is with mammography.”

 

MRI is a noninvasive diagnostic procedure that uses a combination of large magnets and radio frequencies, instead of X-rays, to produce detailed 3-D images of the breast. The procedure doesn’t replace yearly screening mammography, which uses X-rays, but is used in addition to it when more information is needed.

 

Candidates for the procedure include:

• Patients with a suspicious lump or a suspicious finding on mammogram or on ultrasound.

• Women at high risk (a family history) for breast cancer.

• Women who have implants, scar tissue or dense breasts that might jeopardize an accurate result from a mammogram.

• Presurgical assessment of newly diagnosed breast cancer to assess the extent of the breast cancer prior to surgery.