Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi
New Delhi, Jan 21: A leading cancer centre in the national capital has introduced an advanced MRI-guided breast biopsy technique to improve early detection of breast cancer, amid studies showing that nearly 10–20 per cent of cases can be missed during routine mammography, particularly in women with dense breast tissue.
According to an official statement issued on Wednesday, the Apollo Athenaa Women’s Cancer Centre has launched MRI-guided Vacuum-Assisted Breast Biopsy (MRI-guided VABB) to identify cancers that often go undetected in conventional screening. Such cancers can grow silently without forming a lump or showing early symptoms, frequently leading to delayed diagnosis, the statement said.
The development is especially significant in the Indian context, where breast cancer is increasingly being diagnosed in younger women, often almost a decade earlier than in Western countries. Many patients in India continue to be diagnosed at advanced stages, resulting in more aggressive treatment and poorer outcomes.
Dr Preetha Reddy, executive vice chairperson of the Apollo Hospitals Group, said the new technique would enable earlier and more accurate confirmation of cancer. “This initiative strengthens the entire breast diagnostic pathway with greater precision, speed and clinical confidence, helping detect breast cancer earlier and enabling timely, minimally invasive intervention,” she said.
The statement further noted that the hospital has reduced breast MRI scan time from nearly 50 minutes to under 15 minutes by deploying high-resolution MRI systems supported by AI-based protocols, without compromising diagnostic accuracy. This is expected to make MRI screening more accessible for women with dense breasts or those at high risk.
Citing Indian data, the centre said a study involving 2,470 breast cancer patients found that 14.3 per cent were below 40 years of age, with nearly 70 per cent of these younger patients diagnosed at advanced Stage III or IV. It also noted that 45.7 per cent of these younger patients had triple negative breast cancer, an aggressive form of the disease.
Dr Jyoti Arora, senior consultant and lead of the Department of Breast Radiology at the centre, stressed that early detection is critical, especially in younger women with dense breast tissue where routine screening is less effective. She said MRI-guided VABB can detect and confirm breast cancer at a very early stage, often at Stage 0.
The statement also highlighted a recent case of a 70-year-old woman who reported bloody nipple discharge despite normal mammography and ultrasound findings. An MRI-guided VABB subsequently detected Stage 0 breast cancer, allowing timely surgical intervention.
Breast cancer accounts for nearly 27–28 per cent of all cancers among Indian women, and the burden is expected to rise sharply in the coming decades, underscoring the need for more accurate and early diagnostic methods, the centre said.