Vim & Vigor - Spring 2014 - University of Virginia - (Page 49)

Make an Informed Decision Get added conﬁdence that you're taking the right approach to prostate cancer treatment BY KELLY CASEY T o treat or not to treat? That's a question men with prostate cancer often have to face. While some prostate cancers are likely to spread and become deadly, others are unlikely to be harmful. Fortunately, a noninvasive imaging procedure can help doctors and their patients ﬁgure out who have prostate tumors that should be treated aggressively and who need a "watchful-waiting" approach. "Certain patients have a lot to gain by getting a 3T MRI," says Afshan Ornan, MD, one of two UVA Health System radiologists who specialize in abdominal imaging and brought this speciﬁc magnetic resonance imaging of the prostate gland to UVA in 2011. WHY IS 3T MRI HELPFUL? This test uses 3 tesla (a measurement of a magnetic ﬁeld's strength). With twice the strength of a standard MRI, radiologists are better able to see high-grade tumors (likely to spread) that are sometimes no bigger than a pen point. "It's really exciting, because a few years ago, we couldn't see smaller tumors, and now we are able to ﬁnd them with a good amount of accuracy," Ornan says. > SPRI NG 2014 49

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Vim & Vigor - Spring 2014 - University of Virginia

Vim & Vigor - Spring 2014 - University of Virginia
Contents
Life in Balance
Healthy Dose
Humble Yet World Famous
Taming Diabetes Without Drugs
Occupational Hazards
The New Rules of Play
Shopping for Two
Back to Basics
Burn, Baby, Burn
Angelina Jolie
Rock Your Health
Breaking Up with Salt
Disgusting! (or Not?)
Virtual Health
Make an Informed Decision
Hitting the Jackpot
Caring for an Aging Parent?

Vim & Vigor - Spring 2014 - University of Virginia