THE Department of Health has issued a statement highlighting that the Isle of Man Breast Screening Programme, like those in England, does not use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanning.
This is in response to the news item based on a paper in this week’s British Medical Journal (BMA) which highlighted that the use of MRI scans in early breast cancer may lead to needless surgery.
Dr Parameswaran Kishore, Director of Public Health said: "This paper is not applicable to breast screening – Malcolm Kell, the author, is referring to assessment of patients with early breast cancer. We do not use MRI scanning for breast screening either in the Isle of Man or the UK.
"I would strongly encourage women to attend screening, which has shown to be effective in detecting breast cancer early and therefore improves the outcomes of treatment."
For further information or to find out if you are eligible for breast screening, please ring 685339 or seek advice from your GP.
