Annual MRI screenings starting at ages 30 to 35 may reduce breast-cancer mortality by more than 50% among women who carry certain genetic changes in three genes, according to a newly published comparative modeling analysis.
The predictions involve pathogenic variants in ATM, CHEK2 and PALB2 genes – which collectively are as prevalent as the much-reported BRCA1/2 gene mutations. Authors of the study, published today in JAMA Oncology, contend that their findings support MRI screening in some women earlier than existing guidelines propose.
“Screening guidelines have been difficult to develop for these women because there haven’t been clinical trials to inform when to start and how to screen,” said Dr. Kathryn Lowry, an assistant professor of radiology at the University of Washington School of Medicine. She was the paper’s lead author. The work was a collaboration of the Cancer Intervention and Surveillance Modeling Network (CISNET), the Cancer Risk Estimates Related to Susceptibility (CARRIERS) consortium, and the Breast Cancer Surveillance Consortium.
