Mentor communication skills training: development, feasibility, and preliminary efficacy.

Background: Mentoring is vital to career development in academic medicine, and communication underlies all aspects of the mentoring relationship. Although training research mentors has been shown to be effective, few academic medicine faculties have received training in how to mentor. The investigators developed a novel intervention, the Mentor Communication Skills Training for Oncology Faculty ("Comskil Mentor Training") and examined feasibility and preliminary efficacy.

Summer Clinical Oncology Research Experience (SCORE) Program: Engaging Undergraduates from Diverse Backgrounds in Cancer Research.

Diversifying the future cancer research workforce requires that students engage in cancer research, persist in paths toward science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) fields, and choose cancer research careers. The Summer Clinical Oncology Research Experience (SCORE) Program at Memorial Sloan Kettering, designed in 2010 to engage undergraduate (U) and post-baccalaureate (PB) students from diverse backgrounds in cancer research, is an 8-week summer program pairing an U or PB student with a faculty mentor to conduct cancer research. We report demographics and career paths for 2010-2019 SCORE students.

Radiation Oncology AcaDemic Mentorship Program (ROADMAP) for Junior Faculty: One-Year Results of a Prospective Single Institution Initiative.

Purpose: Although mentorship has been associated with promotion, job satisfaction, and retention, data are limited on the mentorship experience of clinical- versus research-track physicians as well as feasibility and relative priority of formal program components.

Methods And Materials: Within a single-institution, multi-site, academic network, we implemented a Radiation Oncology AcaDemic Mentorship Program (ROADMAP) for junior faculty. Validated surveys assessing mentee satisfaction were distributed at baseline and 1 year.

Gateways to the Laboratory: How an MD-PhD Program Increased the Number of Minority Physician-Scientists.

Traditional underrepresented minority (URM) groups (African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans) remain underrepresented among physician-scientists. To address the dearth of URM physician-scientists, in 1993 the Weill Cornell/Rockefeller/Sloan Kettering Tri-Institutional MD-PhD Program developed a pipeline program, Gateways to the Laboratory (Gateways), which focuses on increasing the breadth and depth of the URM physician-scientist pipeline by offering an all-encompassing summer research training program which mirrors the life of a physician-scientist. This includes hypothesis-driven research and clinical shadowing opportunities, coupled with weekly career development workshops and extensive multitiered mentoring.

Breast cancer screening at the Breast Examination Center of Harlem.

Background: This study was designed to describe patient, disease, and treatment characteristics of women diagnosed with breast cancer at the Breast Examination Center of Harlem (BECH) and to determine whether these characteristics have changed over time.

Methods: Retrospective chart review of women diagnosed with breast cancer at BECH from 2000 to 2008 was performed. Comparisons were made to data from an earlier study period (1995-2000).

Cancelled stereotactic biopsy of calcifications not seen using the stereotactic technique: do we still need to biopsy?

Objective: To determine the frequency of cancelled stereotactic biopsy due to non-visualisation of calcifications, and assess associated features and outcome data.

Methods: A retrospective review was performed on 1,874 patients scheduled for stereotactic-guided breast biopsy from 2009 to 2011. Medical records and imaging studies were reviewed.

Focal extravasated mucin in breast core needle biopsies: is surgical excision always necessary?

Focal extravasated mucin (EM) with benign or atypical epithelium is a rare finding at breast core needle biopsy (CNB) and usually prompts surgical excision to rule out mucin-producing carcinoma. In the largest detailed series to date, we assessed surgical outcomes in lesions yielding EM with atypical or nonatypical epithelium at CNB. With IRB approval, we retrospectively reviewed 28 consecutive atypical and nonatypical CNBs with EM that underwent surgical excision at our center over a 22-year period.

Classic lobular carcinoma in situ and atypical lobular hyperplasia at percutaneous breast core biopsy: outcomes of prospective excision.

Background: No consensus exists on the need to excise breast lesions that yield classic lobular carcinoma in situ (LCIS) or atypical lobular hyperplasia (ALH) (known together as classic lobular neoplasia [LN]) as the highest risk lesion at percutaneous core-needle biopsy (CNB). Here, the authors report findings from 72 consecutive lesions with LN at CNB and prospective surgical excision (EXB).

Methods: Lesions that yielded LN at CNB at the authors' center have been referred for EXB since June 2004, regardless of imaging-histologic concordance.

Impact of tamoxifen on amount of fibroglandular tissue, background parenchymal enhancement, and cysts on breast magnetic resonance imaging.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of tamoxifen treatment on amount of fibroglandular tissue (FGT), background parenchymal enhancement (BPE), and cysts on breast MRI. Retrospective search identified 96 women with breast cancer who had a breast MRI both before and during adjuvant tamoxifen therapy between 2002 and 2008. After exclusion of all irradiated breasts, 88 women were eligible.

Papilloma diagnosed at MRI-guided vacuum-assisted breast biopsy: is surgical excision still warranted?

Objective: The objective of our study was to determine the frequency of cancer at surgery in breast lesions yielding papilloma at MRI-guided 9-gauge vacuum-assisted biopsy (VAB) and to determine whether any features are associated with cancer upgrade.

Materials And Methods: For this study, 1487 MRI-guided vacuum-assisted biopsies performed from January 2004 to March 2011 were reviewed. Lesions yielding papilloma were identified and classified as papilloma with or without atypia.

Cancellation of MR imaging-guided breast biopsy due to lesion nonvisualization: frequency and follow-up.

Purpose: To determine the rate of canceled magnetic resonance (MR) imaging-guided breast biopsies due to nonvisualization of the lesion and to assess associated features and outcome data for these cases.

Materials And Methods: With the approval of the institutional review board, a HIPAA-compliant retrospective review, in which the requirement for informed consent was waived, was performed for 907 patients scheduled for MR imaging-guided breast biopsy from 2004 to 2008. In 70 patients, MR imaging biopsy was canceled due to lesion nonvisualization.

Diagnostic usefulness of water-to-fat ratio and choline concentration in malignant and benign breast lesions and normal breast parenchyma: an in vivo (1) H MRS study.

Purpose: To compare total choline concentrations ([Cho]) and water-to-fat (W/F) ratios of subtypes of malignant lesions, benign lesions, and normal breast parenchyma and determine their usefulness in breast cancer diagnosis. Reference standard was histology.

Materials And Methods: In this HIPPA compliant study, proton MRS was performed on 93 patients with suspicious lesions (>1 cm) who underwent MRI-guided interventional procedures, and on 27 prospectively accrued women enrolled for screening MRI.

Background parenchymal enhancement on baseline screening breast MRI: impact on biopsy rate and short-interval follow-up.

Objective: Background parenchymal enhancement on breast MRI refers to normal enhancement of the patient's fibroglandular tissue. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of background parenchymal enhancement on short-interval follow-up, biopsy, and cancer detection rate on baseline screening MRI in a high-risk group.

Materials And Methods: Two hundred fifty baseline high-risk screening MRI examinations were reviewed.

ACR Appropriateness Criteria® on nonpalpable mammographic findings (excluding calcifications).

Screening mammography can detect breast cancer before it becomes clinically apparent. However, the screening process identifies many false-positive findings for each cancer eventually confirmed. Additional tools are available to help differentiate spurious findings from real ones and to help determine when tissue sampling is required, when short-term follow-up will suffice, or whether the finding can be dismissed as benign.

Breast MRI screening of women with a personal history of breast cancer.

Objective: The purpose of this article is to determine the cancer detection and biopsy rate among women who have breast MRI screening solely on the basis of a personal history of breast cancer.

Materials And Methods: This retrospective review of 1,699 breast MRI examinations performed from 1999 to 2001 yielded 144 women with prior breast cancer but no family history who commenced breast MRI screening during that time. Minimal breast cancer was defined as ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) or node-negative invasive breast cancer < 1 cm in size.

The future of mammography: radiology residents' experiences, attitudes, and opinions.

Objective: The objective of our study was to assess the experiences and preferences of radiology residents with respect to breast imaging.

Materials And Methods: We surveyed radiology residents at 26 programs in New York and New Jersey. Survey topics included plans for subspecialty training, beliefs, and attitudes toward breast imaging and breast cancer screening and the likelihood of interpreting mammography in the future.

Geographic access and the use of screening mammography.

Background: Screening mammography rates vary geographically and have recently declined. Inadequate mammography resources in some areas may impair access to this technology. We assessed the relationship between availability of mammography machines and the use of screening.

Malignant lesion segmentation in contrast-enhanced breast MR images based on the marker-controlled watershed.

Breast tumor volume measured on MRI has been used to assess response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy. However, accurate and reproducible delineation of breast lesions can be challenging, since the lesions may have complicated topological structures and heterogeneous intensity distributions. In this article, the authors present an advanced computerized method to semiautomatically segment tumor volumes on T1-weighted, contrast-enhanced breast MRI.

Breast imaging fellowships in the United States: who, what, and where?

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the characteristics of fellowship programs offering breast imaging training and their success in filling positions.

Conclusion: A comprehensive list of fellowship training opportunities in breast imaging may help potential applicants identify relevant programs.

Complete excision of the MRI target lesion at MRI-guided vacuum-assisted biopsy of breast cancer.

Objective: The purpose of our study was to determine the frequency of complete removal of the imaging target at MRI-guided vacuum-assisted biopsy of breast cancer and to assess the residual cancer rate at surgery in these lesions.

Materials And Methods: With the approval of our institutional review board, retrospective review was performed of 416 consecutive lesions that underwent MRI-guided 9-gauge vacuum-assisted biopsy, of which 76 (18%) yielded cancer. Medical and pathology records were reviewed.

US-guided 14-gauge core-needle breast biopsy: results of a validation study in 1352 cases.

Purpose: To retrospectively determine the false-negative rate and the underestimation rate of ultrasonography (US)-guided 14-gauge core-needle breast biopsy (CNB) in nonpalpable lesions, with validation at surgical excision histologic examination and with stability during clinical and imaging follow-up.

Materials And Methods: Informed consent was waived by the institutional review board for this retrospective review of 1352 cases. In 1061 cases, patients underwent surgical excision of lesions visible at US subsequent to US-guided 14-gauge CNB.

Can magnetic resonance imaging be used to select patients for sentinel lymph node biopsy in prophylactic mastectomy?

Background: Sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) in the setting of prophylactic mastectomy (PM) remains controversial. In the current study, recent experience with PM was described and the value of preoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was analyzed in selecting patients for PM with or without SLNB.

Methods: Between January 1999 and January 2006, 529 patients underwent 613 PMs.

MRI identifies otherwise occult disease in select patients with Paget disease of the nipple.

Introduction: For patients with Paget disease (PD) of the nipple, preoperative imaging to detect and evaluate the extent of an underlying malignancy can facilitate appropriate treatment planning. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the role of breast MRI in this setting.

Study Design: Using ICD-9 codes for "breast symptoms," we identified 2,294 patients without a current cancer diagnosis seen at our institution (1995 to 2006).

MRI screening in a clinic population with a family history of breast cancer.

Background: Breast MRI is increasingly being used in patients at increased risk for breast cancer; however, guidelines for MRI screening are inadequately defined. We describe our experience with MRI screening in a large population of women with a family history of breast cancer.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the Memorial Sloan-Kettering breast cancer surveillance program prospective database from April 1999 to July 2006.

The predictive value of ductography and magnetic resonance imaging in the management of nipple discharge.

Background: Standard evaluation (physical examination, mammography, sonography) often fails to identify an underlying lesion in patients with suspicious nipple discharge. The aim of this study was to determine the predictive value of ductography (DG) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in this setting.

Methods: Using ICD-9 codes, we retrospectively identified 376 patients who presented with suspicious nipple discharge (ND) (1995-2005); 306 patients (68%) had negative standard evaluation.