A study using MRI scans to help detect breast cancer early in women at high risk

Cancer type:

Breast cancer

Status:

Results

Phase:

Other

This study used MRI scans to compare levels of fatty acids in the breast tissue of women with and without a BRCA gene change Open a glossary item . People with a BRCA gene change (mutation) have an increased risk of developing breast cancer.

The study was supported by Cancer Research UK. It was open for people to join between 2019 and 2022. The team presented the results at a conference in 2024.

More about this trial

Doctors sometimes use MRI scans to help diagnose breast cancer.

When this study was done, they used dynamic contrast enhanced (DCE) MRI scans. These scans show blood flow to cancer cells. They are useful to find breast cancer that is more developed.

Is this study, researchers wanted to find out if chemical shift encoded imaging (CSEI) MRI scans could be useful to help diagnose breast cancer earlier. They show the different types of fatty tissue in the breast.

Fat is made up of building blocks called fatty acids. The team looked at the amount and pattern of the following fatty acids in breast tissue:

mono unsaturated fatty acids (MUFA)
poly unsaturated fatty acids (PUFA)
saturated fatty acids (SFA)

They compared the results of 4 types of scans:

the whole breast of women who had breast cancer
just the area around the cancer in women who had breast cancer
the whole breast of women who had a BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene change
the whole breast of women who didn’t have breast cancer or a gene change

The main aim of the study was to find out if there are differences between the fatty tissue in different groups of people.

The team hope CSEI MRI scans will be useful to help diagnose breast cancer earlier in women with an increased risk.

Summary of results

A total of 58 women joined this study:

21 women who’d been diagnosed with breast cancer
22 women who had a BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene change
15 women who didn’t have breast cancer or a BRCA gene change (the control group)

The study team compared the CSEI MRI results for the different groups. They looked at the average amount of the different fatty acids.

When they looked at the amount of mono unsaturated fatty acid (MUFA) and saturated fatty acid (SFA), they found that:

there were some differences between the area around the cancer and the whole breast in those who had cancer
it was similar in people who had BRCA gene changes and those who had breast cancer
it was different in people with BRCA gene changes compared to those who didn’t have cancer

The amount of poly unsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) was similar in all groups.

Conclusion
The team concluded that the changes in fatty acids were similar in women who had BRCA changes and those who’d been diagnosed with breast cancer. And that breast cancer can cause some changes in the tissue directly around it.

They also concluded that CSEI MRI scans were an accurate way to look at fatty acids in breast tissue.

Where this information comes from
We have based this summary on information sent to us by the study team. As far as we are aware, the results have not been reviewed by independent specialists (peer reviewed Open a glossary item ) or published in a medical journal yet. We have not analysed the data ourselves.