The procedure involves your being placed on a table; your breasts will be placed in depressions in the scanning table that house the breast coils (the equipment used to detect the magnetic resonance signal). The table will then be moved in a tube-like device containing the magnet. You will be asked to remain quiet, breath normally and lie still on your stomach inside the magnet. Ear plugs will be given to you to reduce the noise level, however you will still be able to have verbal communication with the technologist over the intercom. You may feel warm during the MRI procedure. You will be asked to remain still for up to 15 minutes at a time while magnetic resonance imaging of one or both breasts is performed. It is very important that you stay still while the pictures are being taken.
After an initial series of images, you will receive an injection into a vein of about 15 cc (3 tablespoons) of Gadolinium, a non-radioactive contrast agent that improves the visibility of some tumors in MRI scans. An intravenous catheter (or I.V., a tiny tube inserted into a vein) may be placed in your arm ahead of time for the purpose of injecting the contrast agent. This injection will be performed by a physician or registered nurse. An additional series of images will be acquired after the injection. The imaging session will take approximately one hour and the total exam duration is one and one half hours, to allow for changing into hospital garments, answering questions and signing consent forms.
Once the entire exam is over, the table will move out of the magnet and the nurse, doctor or technologist will remove any I.V. and help you off the table. You are then free to change. Since the computer accumulates hundreds of pictures, it may take a while for your films to be printed and examined. Ask if you should wait for your films or when your doctor can expect them.
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