Project 2: Specificity of MRI with Optimal Temporal, Spatial, and Spectral Sampling for Early Breast Cancer

Leader Gregory Karczmar, PhD
Co-Leaders Nora Jaskowiak, MD & Gillian Newstead, MD

This project examines new ways to use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to detect pre-cancerous lesions in their earliest stages of development.  MRI is excellent in detecting potential malignancies before they become serious; however, this sensitivity leads to many false positives, and physicians often hesitate to carry out certain procedures for fear of performing unnecessary biopsies, surgery, and other treatments.  Our team of renowned clinicians are developing and testing MRI techniques that enable us to more accurately determine whether very small lesions are cancerous.  Eventually, we hope to destroy the ones identified as cancerous with MRI-directed, minimally invasive procedures, such as ultrasound.  In addition, the research project provides an unusual opportunity to correlate MRI parameters with biological markers for malignancy in early breast cancers, possibly leading to improved design of MRI protocols, and interpretation of MRI images. The specific aims of the study are to:

Aim 1: Use MRI with improved spectral, spatial, and temporal sampling (MRITSS) to acquire precise images of suspicious incidental lesions found in high-risk women. Determine whether MRITSS increases specificity while maintaining adequate sensitivity. MRITSS will be compared to conventional MRI and pathology will be used as the gold standard.

Aim 2: Determine whether conventional and/or MRITSS MRI can distinguish between invasive and intralobular/intraductal cancers.

Aim 3: Determine whether breast lesions in African American women who are at risk for high grade, estrogen receptor negative breast cancer are significantly different from those of other women in the study.

Aim 4: Test whether there are specific biological markers that are strongly correlated with MRI parameters and explain the appearance of functional and anatomic MRI
images of early breast cancers. Biomarkers will include microvessel density, tumor proliferation rate as indicated by Ki67, P53 and HER2 expression.

Project 2 Publications

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Project 1: Imaging-Based Determination of Breast Cancer Risk

Project 3: Variation in Hormone and Xenobiotic Metabolizing Enzyme Genes and Breast Cancer

Project 4: Identifying Population Specific Variants Important in Toxicity to Breast Cancer Chemotherapy