The Radiology Business Journal (2/28, Walter) reports that research indicates that “when MRI-guided breast biopsy is canceled due to nonvisualization, follow-up imaging typically finds that the lesion has completely resolved.” However, the study “authors still recommend follow-up MRI imaging six months later...because some lesions do persist.” The findings were published in Academic Radiology.

Deseret (UT) News (2/28, Bankhead) reports that a survey found that “women often found radiology dense breast notifications (DBNs) difficult to understand and interpreted the notice incorrectly.” Researchers found that “overall, 49 of 58 women who received DBNs remembered the notifications, and all 30 women who completed a follow-up telephone survey remembered that the notice stated they had dense breasts.” But, “none of the survey participants mentioned details about the degree of breast density or how to obtain additional information.” The findings were published online in Patient Education & Counseling.

The Deseret (UT) News (2/26, Lockhart) reports Utah’s Senate Business and Labor Committee on Monday advanced a bill which would require healthcare providers to warn women with dense breast tissue that it may be challenging for a mammogram to screen them for potential breast cancer. The legislation dictates that patients must receive a statement explaining the complication, and includes updates that one legislator said made it “a little more specific about other forms of cancer screening examinations.”

Reuters (2/26, Rapaport) reports that “women with breast cancer are often afraid of getting radiation, but” research on “women who’ve had this treatment suggests their experiences with it were much better than they expected.” The findings were published online in the journal Cancer.

HealthDay (2/26, Norton) reports that “the study of more than 300 women who underwent breast radiation found that almost half had heard ‘frightening’ stories going into treatment.” However, just “2 percent ultimately agreed that the stories were true.” Meanwhile, “over 80 percent of all patients said their experience with radiation therapy was actually ‘less scary’ than they’d expected.”

Aunt Minnie (2/20, Forrest) reports that German researchers have developed a breast MRI technique that greatly reduces false-positive findings and increases the detection of breast cancer – without the need for a gadolinium-based contrast agent, according to a study published online February 20 in Radiology. “[The] model ... reduces false-positive results by 70% in lesions classified as BI-RADS 4 or 5 at screening mammography while retaining sensitivity greater than 98%,” wrote the researchers, adding, “Since malignant lesions disrupt the tissue structures at this level, diffusion kurtosis might serve as a relevant marker of changes.”