MRI scans can detect 46% more cases of prostate cancer than biopsies: Study

New and advanced MRI scans are able to identify aggressive prostate cancer, a new study has found.

By using MRI scans, an international team of researchers led by the University College London, diagnosed 46% aggressive tumours, the Daily Mail reported.

At this point of time, a man perceived to be at risk of prostate cancer is subjected to a biopsy. Close to 100,000 middle-aged men in Britain undergo this procedure annually.

Biopsies are known to be painful and come with a risk of side effects like infections and bleeding.

“For too long men have had to endure a stab-in-the-dark biopsy technique, which can miss one in four harmful prostate cancers. It is now more important than ever that all men with suspected prostate cancer get a multi-parametric MRI scan before biopsy,” Karen Stalbow of Prostate Cancer UK, told the Daily Mail.

The study was presented at the European Association of Urology congress in Copenhagen.