News - Radiology Associates ImagingRadiology Associates Imaging

Announcing the area’s first facilities to earn the prestigious ACR Breast Imaging Center’s of Excellence Designation.

The ACR (American College of Radiology) awards accreditation to facilities of high practice standards after a peer-review evaluation of the practice. Evaluations are conducted by board-certified physicians and medical physicists who are experts in the field. They assess the qualifications of the personnel and the adequacy of facility equipment. The surveyors report their findings to the ACR’s Committee on Accreditation which subsequently provides the practice with a comprehensive report.

The Breast Imaging Center of Excellence is given only to centers whose quality earns ACR accreditation in Mammography, Stereotactic Breast Biopsy and Breast Ultrasound. Both our Twin Lakes and St. Augustine Imaging facilities were awarded this esteemed accreditation. For more information about the ACR and its guidelines, visit www.acr.org or call us at 386-274-5454.

Did you know? A Patient Educational Article from Radiology Associates Imaging

By - Men's Imaging Services

Did you know that Radiology Associates Imaging offers a prostate imaging exam that can detect prostate cancer that is missed by biopsy?

Take a look at the images below:

This patient had an elevated PSA value and negative ultrasound-guided prostate biopsy. After the MRI showed an abnormality (arrows) suspicious for prostate cancer in the central gland, the Urologist performed a repeat biopsy targeted to the area of interest. Pathology demonstrated prostate adenocarcioma.

“The patient’s urologist was concerned with the rising PSA value and he understood that even though the biopsy results were negative, that doesn’t guarantee that there isn’t a cancer present,” states Dr. John Gianini. Dr. Gianini is one of our Radiologists who is fellowship trained in Abdominal Imaging, which is a field dedicated to imaging the gastrointestinal and genitourinary systems. He adds, “With a standard 12 sample prostate biopsy only a small portion of the prostate gland is evaluated, especially in men with enlarged prostates. This results in the possibility of missed cancers that may be clinically significant.” More Urologists are now considering prostate MRI as a complementary exam to the PSA blood test and prostate gland biopsy in patients with persistently rising PSA values.

Prostate MRI is performed on one of our high-field strength 3 Tesla MRI units using state-of-art technology. “Since we are using a 3 Tesla scanner, we are able to perform the exam without the use of an endorectal coil,” Dr. Gianini explains, “Also it allows us to perform high quality functional imaging including perfusion, diffusion, and spectroscopy. The patients are getting the highest quality exam available.”

As this case highlights, prostate MRI has become more relevant in the diagnosis and management of prostate cancer. Its precise role in the work-up of prostate cancer is still being defined through research but may be helpful in the following setting:

Elevated PSA with negative biopsy
Staging for biopsy proven prostate cancer
Radiation therapy treatment planning
Detection of local recurrence after treatment

We will soon have more information on prostate MRI on our website. If you have any questions, you can reach Dr. Gianini via email at jgianini@radassociates.us .

For more information on Prostate MRI, please visit RadiologyInfo.org.

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