Are researchers suggesting that MRI replace mammography in breast cancer screening?
This study was not designed to determine whether mammography or MRI is a better screening test for breast cancer in women who are at average risk. Mammography is an excellent tool for screening women at average risk for breast cancer especially because it is easily accessible and less expensive than MRI. The amount insurance companies pay for screening mammograms varies from $85 to $150, while the amount paid for MRI scans ranges from $ 800 to $ 2,000. The amount that a patient may pay for these screenings can vary considerably from these insurance payment amounts across the U.S. The study results strongly support MRI as a complement to — but not a replacement for –mammography. MRI improves the evaluation of the extent of disease in patients above and beyond what mammography can contribute. This finding suggests that patients who undergo a thorough diagnostic work-up, at the time of the initial diagnosis of a breast cancer, will benefit from having an MRI of the opposite breast to en
