Higher coronary artery calcium levels in middle-age were associated with structural heart abnormalities linked to future heart failure, particularly among blacks, according to new research inCirculation:Cardiovascular Imaging, anAmerican Heart Association journal.

A large international study has shown that an MRI scan can reduce the number of invasive prostate biopsies by up to 28%. The PRECISION1 trial shows that using MRI to target prostate biopsies leads to more of the harmful prostate cancers, and fewer harmless cancers being diagnosed. Given that more than a million men in Europe undergo a prostate biopsy every year, the authors believe that this work could change clinical practice. The results are presented today at the European Association of Urology Congress in Copenhagen, with simultaneous publication in the New England Journal of Medicine.

A study of around 300 volunteers, conducted in Austria by MedUni Vienna in collaboration with Diagnostic Graz, convincingly shows that Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is the best choice for clarifying ambiguous mammography results.

Breast cancer cells that spread to other parts of the body break off and leave the primary tumour at late stages of disease development, scientists from the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute and their collaborators have found.

Ionizing radiation, such as x-rays, has a harmful effect on the cardiovascular system even at doses equivalent to recurrent CT imaging, a new study published in the International Journal of Radiation Biology suggests.

A method for predicting someone’s ‘brain age’ based on MRI scans could help to spot who might be at increased risk of poor health and even dying at a younger age.