Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)

Magnetic resonance imaging at Docrates

Docrates offers quick access to an MRI scan. Even though we are a cancer hospital, we also perform scans related to other conditions and based on referrals by physicians outside Docrates.

Cutting-edge equipment produces even better images

At Docrates, MRI scans are performed using the newest three-tesla scanner by Siemens, Magnetom Vida 3T. It produces scans using a three-tesla magnetic field. This enables us to make even more specific diagnoses, and as a result, create better and more individually tailored treatment plans.

The power of three teslas enables more specific diagnoses of cancers such as breast cancer and prostate cancer, for which MRI is one of the most sensitive methods of detection. In cases where breast cancer is suspected, MRI can be used to detect cancer foci that cannot be detected using mammography. In case of prostate cancer suspicion, MRI is the primary imaging method. MRI scans are also crucial in examining conditions such as brain tumors and other neurological disorders. The newest scanner will bring accuracy in examining these as well.

We would also especially like to mention that our new scanner will make the imaging of upper abdominal organs, for example the liver, much easier. Multi-phase scans using contrast agents can now be performed while the patient is breathing freely, and the movement caused by breathing will no longer affect the quality of the image.

MRI has many applications, and the ones mentioned above are just a few of them.

At Docrates, MRI scans can be complemented with PET-CT imaging that uses radioactive tracers to determine the stage of the cancer.

What happens during the scan?

During the scan, a patient will lie down in a tube-shaped space inside the scanner that makes various sounds as the scanner produces images. There is no need to be afraid of the examination. A patient will be safe inside the scanner and able to talk to the nurse performing the scan. If you want, you can also listen to music during the scan.

However, if you have a pacemaker, an insulin pump or a cochlear implant, you will not be able to have an MRI scan.

Equipment

At Docrates, scans are performed using a modern wide-bore scanner that increases patient comfort. We use the three-tesla Siemens Magnetom Vida 3T MRI scanner. The scanner is shaped like an arch, and its bore, with a diameter of 70 cm, is wider than that of the average scanner. The lighting and air conditioning inside the arch make the examination as comfortable as possible for the patient.

Technical details

• Siemens Magnetom Vida 3T MRI scanner
• Wide bore (70 cm)
• Coils that represent cutting-edge technology
• Versatile oncological image analysis softwares for the diagnosis of cancer
• DICOM interface to Docrates’s PACS archive