Timing MRIs and mammograms

PurpleCat

Question for those who get both annual MRI and mammograms: How do you time them? My understanding is that the usual practice is to alternate them ever six months, but I've decided I'm better off condensing all the anxiety into one episode per year and then have the rest of the year to not think about breast cancer, and my team is fine with that. Now that I'm between tests (MRI from earlier this week turned out fine, yay, but mammogram still looming ahead) I'm thinking how great it would be to do both tests on the same day, since both are available in the same building. I could schedule the mammogram half an hour before the MRI, make just one visit to the treatment center, and then have just one anxious wait for both sets of results. Does anyone do both in one day? And if so, what's the recommended order? Would the MRI contrast cause problems with the mammogram, or would the fresh "squeeze trauma" cause issues with the MRI?

Full disclosure: I've actually already had BC, so am beyond the high risk category except for risk of recurrence (which is actually pretty low) but this seems like the best forum for finding people who get annual MRIs with their mammograms.

MinusTwo

I do ULS and MRI - no mammograms since I don't have breasts left. They are scheduled further apart at the recommendation of my radiologist. When I do them together, he said to do the ULS first. ULS is now every two years. MRI has been dropped unless something showed up in the ULS results.

cookie54

So they can be done in one day but for monitoring purposes they should be six months apart. The point being that your are being imaged every 6 months to keep a close watch on things. I was monitored this way for years and glad !Because my first diagnosis I had a mammo in May which was negative but the following MRI showed a mass. I understand your anxiety but it is important unless your oncologist feels comfortable with imaging once a year. Best wishes.

Veeder14

I get the MRI and mammogram about 6 months apart. My cancer only showed up on MRI but I get the mammogram that my MO wants since insurance will not approve MRI 2x per year. I see how combining your tests to one day might seem favorably to you. However, with all my pain issues that would be impossible