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Breast MRI: New CME Program Launched

by Bradley Rose, Senior Designer | August 28, 2007
ICPME is accredited by the
Accreditation Council for
Continuing Medical Education
(ACCME) to provide
continuing medical education
for physicians.


Confirma®, developer of CADstream® and market leader in computer-aided detection (CAD) for breast MRI, announced that it has awarded an educational grant to the International Center for Postgraduate Medical Education (ICPME) to develop a new curriculum of continuing medical education for breast MRI. ICPME is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

The breast MRI curriculum includes two separate programs that are supported by the educational grant from Confirma and there are no fees for participation. The first program is "Decisions in Medical Imaging -- Breast MRI Analysis and Interpretation with CAD," a unique series of online case reviews using CAD to aid the radiologist in the analysis and interpretation of breast MRI studies.

The second program is a full-day course of instruction and hands-on training for radiologists and interventional radiologists, "Breast MR Imaging, Interpretation and Intervention." The initial courses will be held on October 11, 2007 in Littleton, CO, at the Denver Marriott South at Park Meadows, followed by courses in Los Angeles (January 17, 2008) and Dallas (February 1, 2008).

Breast MRI Today
While mammography and breast ultrasound are considered the "gold standard" for breast cancer detection, an increasing body of research data has shown breast MRI to be an effective diagnostic and interventional tool. With the recently updated breast screening guidelines issued by the American Cancer Society and the multi-center study published in The New England Journal of Medicine documenting the efficacy of MRI in detection of contralateral cancers in patients diagnosed with breast disease, it is expected that there will be an increased demand for breast MRI. However, there are significant challenges for practices wishing to offer breast MRI studies, including the vast amount of data produced, the lack of consistent standards in interpretation and the shortage of radiologists fully trained in the procedure. In addition, while extremely sensitive, breast MRI can produce false positives, leading to unnecessary biopsies.

"There are challenges associated with breast MRI and thus adequate training is essential," said David Gruen, M.D., medical director, The Suite for Women's Imaging at Norwalk, Norwalk, CT, and one of the faculty for the online case review program. "ICPME's new programs will enable more radiologists to become proficient and help meet the increasing demand for this important procedure. In addition, a recent study in the journal Radiology suggests CAD for breast MRI may assist radiologists in the analysis and discrimination of benign and malignant lesions, reducing the rate of false positives." Dr. Gruen completed his postgraduate training at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, where he worked closely with Dr. Elizabeth Morris' team on some of the earliest landmark studies of breast MRI.