Role Of PET/CT Versus MRI In Diagnosis, Staging And Follow Up Of Breast Cancer

Abstract

Despite of the major advance in technology, mammography remain the primary imaging modility for early detection of breast cancer. Breast ultrasonography is indicated in evaluation of questionable or non specific mammographic findings as well as evaluation of a patient who presented with breast lump to differentiate solid from cystic lesions. US remains the initial imaging modality for evaluation of symptomatic woman who are pregnant and those younger than 35 years. New imaging modalities have been developed to provide improved detection and management of patients with breast cancer, of these are PET/CT and MRI. First results using PET/CT imaging in the follow-up of breast cancer patients demonstrate increased specificity compared with FDG PET alone. PET/CT offers to detect recurrent and metastatic breast cancer disease at early stage and thus continue to demonstrate the efficacy of molecular imaging in patient management. In primary tumor, FDG PET/CT is of limited use in patients with early-stage disease without nodal or distant metastases, it has poor detection rate for small breast carcinomas.