EuroAIM

European Network for the Assessment of Imaging in Medicine

In response to a need for evidence for the rational use of imaging technology, EIBIR established the European Network for the Assessment of Imaging in Medicine (EuroAIM), to systematically assess radiological technology and seek evidence for its best use in clinical practice.

During the European Congress of Radiology 2010, EuroAIM promoted a European Working Group for Evidence-Based Radiology (EBR). The background of reference for this group was a paper called “Evidence-based radiology: why and how?“.

Read the paper

The key questions to be answered by the working group are:

  • Why evidence-based radiology?
  • What happens if evidence-based medicine is applied to radiology?
  • Is the request of imaging examinations from clinicians evidence-based?
  • What is the level of evidence of interventional procedures performed by radiologists?
  • Are radiologists represented in the authorship of secondary evidence on imaging and radiological procedures?
  • Are radiologists represented in the authorship of guidelines concerning imaging and radiological procedures?
  • Is the use of high-tech radiological equipment evidence-based?
  • How can the evidence on diagnostic performance of imaging modalities be easily and rapidly evaluated for specific clinical indications?

Curious to know more about the activities of the Evidence-Based Radiology Working Group?

Find out more

Guidelines Evaluation

The EuroAIM Joint Intiative has started a project on the evaluation of the quality of guidelines involving imaging using the AGREE II tool. This project is possible thanks to the close cooperation of the Subspecialty Societies of the European Society of Radiology.

The papers are published as Open Access in Insights into Imaging.

Below, is a list of reports already published:

MIPA Study

The Multicenter International Prospective Analysis (MIPA) study provides novel insights into whether and to what extent breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) before surgery impacts surgical treatment in breast cancer practice and brings to light new evidence to inform the discussion on the use of breast MRI before surgery.

Breast MRI has been demonstrated to outperform mammography and ultrasonography in providing information on tumour extent and uncovering additional cancers undetected by conventional methods. Therefore, the routine use of breast MRI is argued to allow more tailored surgical planning. However, over the last two decades, preoperative breast MRI has been considered to prompt a very large increase in mastectomy, thereby counteracting the trend in favour of breast conserving surgery. This highlights the need for a better understanding of the effect of preoperative breast MRI on clinical decision-making.

Under the lead of Prof. Francesco Sardanelli, Professor at the University of Milan and Director of Radiology Department at the IRCCS Policlinico San Donato, the research team behind the MIPA study (study protocol published in 2020) conducted a large-scale evaluation of the clinical practice of performing or not performing breast MRI in thousands of patients newly diagnosed with breast cancer. Data from 5,896 patients (excluding candidates to neoadjuvant therapy) were collected from 27 qualified clinical centres worldwide between June 2013 and November 2018 and subsequently analysed. The paper reporting the main results of the MIPA study has been just published in European Radiology.

The first interesting data is that 692 of 5896 patients had breast MRI for screening or diagnostic purposes, i.e. the cancer was diagnosed with breast MRI: for more than one in five women breast MRI was used for surgical planning even though it was not performed with “preoperative” intent, a setting that could be named as “preoperative breast MRI by default”. These cases were excluded by the primary results and a specific analysis on this subgroup is ongoing.

Comparing 2441 patients who had preoperative breast MRI (MRI group) with 2763 patients who did not (noMRI group), the main findings were the following. Surgeons participated in requesting MRI in about 45% of the cases, showing the real routine practice where surgeons frequently ask for this examination. Patients sent to MRI were younger and more in pre/perimenopausal status, had denser breasts, a higher proportion of multifocal/multicentric cancers diagnosed before MRI on conventional imaging (mammography/ultrasound), a higher proportion of cases of invasive lobular histopathology, and a tumor size at final pathology equal to or larger than 20 mm (T2 or higher stage), all differences being highly significant. This data shows a specific selection for preoperative breast MRI of women with a higher risk of mastectomy. Of note, the proportion of women with mastectomy already planned before MRI was higher in the MRI group (22.4%) than in the noMRI group (14.4%), again with high significance, so that in many cases MRI was used as a “confirmation tool” for a mastectomy already planned before MRI.

The rate of mastectomy after MRI was 33.7%, with 2.0% due to the woman’s choice, 0.5% due to other reasons, and 8.8% as additional mastectomy rate associated with MRI. These data are compared with 15.6%, 0.7%, and 0.5% in the noMRI group, respectively. Only in 0.3% of cases, we observed a conversion from mastectomy to conserving surgery by MRI. The reoperation rate for positive margins was significantly lower (8.5%) in the MRI group than in the noMRI group (11.7%). The overall mastectomy rate (also including mastectomies as a second intervention) was 36.3% versus 18.0%, respectively. Regarding women of the MRI group who underwent conserving surgery, MRI did not alter the surgical extent in 84.5% of cases. The remaining 15.5% received less extensive surgery (1.6%), more extensive single excision (11.3%), or multiple excisions (2.6%), this 15.5% representing 10.4% of the entire MRI group.

The MIPA results clearly show that the discussion on the routine use of breast MRI before surgery needs to take into account that: 1) for over 20% of the cases, we have a “breast MRI by default” (the cancer is diagnosed with MRI); 2) surgeons ask for preoperative MRI in 45% of the cases; 3) usually patients with a higher mastectomy risk are referred for preoperative MRI (in about two thirds of mastectomies, this surgical treatment is already the option of choice before MRI, so MRI is used as a “confirmation tool”); 4) with this selection, an additional mastectomy rate of 9% is observed, counterbalanced by a reduction in reoperation rate by about 3%; 5) women of the MRI group who received conserving surgery had a more tailored excision in 16% of the cases (10% of the entire MRI group).

The MIPA study provides new insights on the controversial topic of preoperative breast MRI. MIPA results can support discussion in tumour boards when preoperative MRI is under consideration and should be shared with patients to achieve informed decision-making.

Acknowledgements
The MIPA study was managed by the European Institute for Biomedical Imaging Research (EIBIR) under the scientific lead of Prof. Francesco Sardanelli, University of Milan and IRCCS Policlinico San Donato. MIPA was promoted by the European Network for the Assessment of Imaging in Medicine (EuroAIM), an EIBIR joint initiative, and endorsed by the European Society of Breast Imaging (EUSOBI). The study received an unconditional research grant from Bayer AG.

References

  • Preoperative breast MRI positively impacts surgical outcomes of needle biopsy-diagnosed pure DCIS: a patient-matched analysis from the MIPA study.
    Cozzi A, Di Leo G, Houssami N, Gilbert FJ, Helbich TH, Álvarez Benito M, Balleyguier C, Bazzocchi M, Bult P, Calabrese M, Camps Herrero J, Cartia F, Cassano E, Clauser P, de Lima Docema MF, Depretto C, Dominelli V, Forrai G, Girometti R, Harms SE, Hilborne S, Ienzi R, Lobbes MBI, Losio C, Mann RM, Montemezzi S, Obdeijn IM, Aksoy Ozcan U, Pediconi F, Pinker K, Preibsch H, Raya Povedano JL, Rossi Saccarelli C, Sacchetto D, Scaperrotta GP, Schlooz M, Szabó BK, Taylor DB, Ulus SÖ, Van Goethem M, Veltman J, Weigel S, Wenkel E, Zuiani C, Sardanelli F.
    Eur Radiol. 2023 doi: 10.1007/s00330-023-10409-5.
  • Screening and diagnostic breast MRI: how do they impact surgical treatment? Insights from the MIPA study.
    Cozzi A, Di Leo G, Houssami N, Gilbert FJ, Helbich TH, Álvarez Benito M, Balleyguier C, Bazzocchi M, Bult P, Calabrese M, Camps Herrero J, Cartia F, Cassano E, Clauser P, de Lima Docema MF, Depretto C, Dominelli V, Forrai G, Girometti R, Harms SE, Hilborne S, Ienzi R, Lobbes MBI, Losio C, Mann RM, Montemezzi S, Obdeijn IM, Ozcan UA, Pediconi F, Pinker K, Preibsch H, Raya Povedano JL, Rossi Saccarelli C, Sacchetto D, Scaperrotta GP, Schlooz M, Szabó BK, Taylor DB, Ulus ÖS, Van Goethem M, Veltman J, Weigel S, Wenkel E, Zuiani C, Sardanelli F.
    Eur Radiol. 2023 doi: 10.1007/s00330-023-09600-5.
  • Magnetic resonance imaging before breast cancer surgery: results of an observational multicenter international prospective analysis (MIPA).
    Sardanelli F, Trimboli RM, Houssami N, Gilbert FJ, Helbich TH, Álvarez Benito M, Balleyguier C, Bazzocchi M, Bult P, Calabrese M, Camps Herrero J, Cartia F, Cassano E, Clauser P, Cozzi A, de Andrade DA, de Lima Docema MF, Depretto C, Dominelli V, Forrai G, Girometti R, Harms SE, Hilborne S, Ienzi R, Lobbes MBI, Losio C, Mann RM, Montemezzi S, Obdeijn IM, Ozcan UA, Pediconi F, Pinker K, Preibsch H, Raya Povedano JL, Sacchetto D, Scaperrotta GP, Schiaffino S, Schlooz M, Szabó BK, Taylor DB, Ulus ÖS, Van Goethem M, Veltman J, Weigel S, Wenkel E, Zuiani C, Di Leo G.
    Eur Radiol. 2022 doi: 10.1007/s00330-021-08240-x.
  • Solving the preoperative breast MRI conundrum: design and protocol of the MIPA study.
    Sardanelli F, Trimboli RM, Houssami N, Gilbert FJ, Helbich TH, Alvarez Benito M, Balleyguier C, Bazzocchi M, Bult P, Calabrese M, Camps Herrero J, Cartia F, Cassano E, Clauser P, de Andrade DA, de Lima Docema MF, Depretto C, Forrai G, Girometti R, Harms SE, Hilborne S, Ienzi R, Lobbes MBI, Losio C, Mann RM, Montemezzi S, Obdeijn IM, Ozcan UA, Pediconi F, Preibsch H, Raya-Povedano JL, Sacchetto D, Scaperrotta GP, Schlooz M, Szabo BK, Ulus OS, Taylor DB, Van Goethem M, Veltman J, Weigel S, Wenkel E, Zuiani C, Di Leo G.
    Eur Radiol. 2020 doi: 10.1007/s00330-020-06824-7.

Impact of artificial intelligence on radiology

EuroAIM, in collaboration with the European Society of Medical Imaging Informatics (EuSoMII), launched a survey among members of the European Society of Radiology to investigate the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on radiology. “Impact of AI on radiology: a EuroAIM/EuSoMII 2024 survey among ESR members,” a follow-up to the previous survey, was published in Insights into Imaging in 2018.

References

Sustainability in radiology

The aim of the project focusing on sustainability in radiology is to comprehensively assess the environmental impact resulting from energy consumption and carbon emissions within these facilities. Through conducting a systematic review, the project endeavours to analyse existing data and literature to evaluate the extent of the environmental footprint generated by radiology departments. Ultimately, the project seeks to provide insights and recommendations that can guide efforts towards reducing the environmental impact of radiology operations, thereby contributing to the broader goal of environmental stewardship within healthcare settings.

References

  • The environmental impact of energy consumption and carbon emissions in radiology departments: a systematic review.
    Roletto A, Zanardo M, Bonfitto GR, Catania D, Sardanelli F, Zanoni S.
    Eur Radiol Exp. 2024 doi: 10.1186/s41747-024-00424-6.

European radiographers’ role and perspectives

The aim of this investigation, conducted through a EuroAIM survey, is to comprehensively explore the role and perspectives of European radiographers within the field of medical imaging. The survey, promoted and developed by EuroAIM in collaboration with the European Federation of Radiographers Societies (EFRS) and European Society of Radiology, seeks to elucidate the current landscape of radiographers’ responsibilities, challenges and evolving roles within clinical practice.

For further information on EuroAIM, please contact the initiative Director, Professor Francesco Sardanelli.