An MRI of the breast offers valuable information about many breast conditions that cannot be obtained by other imaging modalities, such as mammography or ultrasound.

MRI of the breast is not a replacement for mammography or ultrasound imaging but rather a supplemental tool that has many important uses, including screening women at high risk for breast cancer.

This exam may be an appropriate tool to screen for breast cancer, and is typically used when a strong family history of breast cancer is present.

A strong family history is usually a mother or sister who has had breast cancer before age 50. It can also be aunts or cousins, including those on your father’s side. Relatives who have had ovarian cancer also increase your risk.

Your primary care doctor can look at your family history and determine if an MRI screening may be appropriate for you.

If in the unfortunate circumstance you are diagnosed with breast cancer, a breast MRI may be performed to determine how large the cancer is and whether it involves the underlying muscle. An MRI may show if there are other cancers in the same breast, whether there is an unsuspected cancer in the opposite breast, and if there are any abnormally large lymph nodes in the armpit, which can be a sign that the cancer has spread to that site.