Association of the Amount of Fibroglandular Tissue on MRI and Background Parenchymal Enhancement on DCE-MRI with Breast Cancer Risk

Alana R. Amarosa¹, Sungheon Kim¹, Amy Melsaether¹, Jason McKellop¹, Melanie Moccaldi¹, Linda Moy¹

The purpose of this study is to investigate whether the amount of fibroglandular tissue on MRI and background parenchymal enhancement are associated with breast cancer risk. This retrospective study included 36 BRCA mutation carriers and 40 controls who underwent MRI-guided biopsy for an enhancing lesion. When comparing signal percent enhancement for pre- and post-menopausal BRCA carriers, we found a significant difference (p=0.04). Also, menopausal BRCA carriers had higher early enhancement rate than pre-menopausal BRCA carriers. No such difference was found between pre- and post-menopausal control groups. These findings substantiate our hypothesis that breast cancer risk is associated with breast density.