MRI breast screening trial for hard-to-spot cancers

A new MRI breast screening trial aims to find cancers missed by mammograms in women with average breast density.

The Fast MRI Dyamond study will involve around 1,000 women aged 50 to 52 at six NHS sites, including Cheltenham, Swindon and Truro. The scans, which take around three minutes, will test whether the method can improve early detection.

Led by North Bristol NHS Trust, the study will assess whether breast cancers not visible on standard mammograms can be spotted earlier using Fast MRI.

Dr Lyn Jones, consultant radiologist and study lead, said: “We know that Fast MRI can find cancers earlier than mammograms for women with dense breasts.”

Breast density refers to the proportion of glandular to fatty tissue in the breast. On a mammogram, dense tissue appears white—similar to how cancer appears—making it harder to detect tumours.

Diana Dalgliesh, who works at Southmead Hospital, joined the three-and-a-half-year trial after losing her sister Alison to breast cancer in her 40s in 2023.

“Her breast cancer was not picked up on a mammogram which she’d had only a few months before her diagnosis,” she said.

“Perhaps if there had been a different way of screening it might have been picked up, so I thought if I am able to have an MRI scan, it may detect things earlier than if I just had a mammogram alone.”

Ms Dalgliesh said she has “little doubt” her sister’s cancer could have been found sooner with an MRI.

“I know the type of cancer she had is more easily seen on an MRI than a mammogram. Whether it would have changed the outcome I don’t know,” she added.

Fast MRI is a shorter version of the breast MRI scan already used to detect aggressive cancers under one centimetre in women with dense breast tissue.

Unlike mammograms, it does not involve compressing the breast or using radiation.

The study is jointly funded by £1.36m from the Medical Research Council and the National Institute for Health and Care Research. It is the first time women with average breast density in the UK will be offered MRI alongside routine mammogram appointments.

Janice Rose, from the patient group Independent Cancer Patients’ Voice, said the technology “could have a huge benefit to women entering the screening programme.”

“Early diagnosis for breast cancer gives women the best possible outcome,” she added.

The NHS Breast Screening Programme currently offers mammograms every three years to women aged 50 to 70. Around 1,300 lives are saved annually through early breast cancer detection.