National Breast and Ovarian Cancer Centre* welcomes the addition of two new items to the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) for the use of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) in the surveillance and diagnosis of women under 50 years of age at high risk of developing breast cancer.
From 1 February 2009, a Medicare Benefit will be payable for the use of MRI in the surveillance of women under 50 years who have no signs or symptoms of breast cancer but are at high risk of developing the disease. A second Benefit is available if an additional MRI scan is required for the follow-up of any abnormalities detected in the previous 12 months.
The Benefits are available to women deemed at ‘high risk’ of breast cancer because of a strong family history of breast or ovarian cancer, or the presence of a high risk gene mutation, as specified in the item descriptor.
National Breast and Ovarian Cancer Centre* Director Dr Helen Zorbas said, “This is a most welcome announcement from the Australian Government.
“The introduction of MBS items for MRI means younger women at high risk of breast cancer can access an important additional imaging tool to assist in the early detection of the disease.
“The evidence supports the benefit of MRI in this group of women whose risk for breast cancer may be more than three times the population average,” said Dr Zorbas.
Each year approximately 3000 women under the age of 50 years are diagnosed with breast cancer in Australia.
MRI involves the use of a strong magnetic field to produce a detailed image of tissues within the body. The main benefits of MRI relate to the quality and resolution of images that can be obtained.
National Breast and Ovarian Cancer Centre* is funded by the Australian Government and works with consumers, health professionals, cancer organisations, researchers and governments to improve care and cancer control in breast and ovarian cancer.