M Health Fairview Clinics and Surgery Center Earns ACR Prostate Cancer MRI Center Designation
Minneapolis, Minnesota — The M Health Fairview Clinics and Surgery Center has been designated a Prostate Cancer MRI Center by the American College of Radiology® (ACR®).
The ACR Prostate Cancer MRI Center designation is a voluntary program that recognizes facilities that commit to practice safe, effective diagnostic care for individuals at the highest risk for prostate cancer.
In order to receive this distinction, facilities must be accredited by the ACR in body imaging with a rigorous assessment of its prostate specific MRI protocols and infrastructure.
“The University of Minnesota is proud to be one of the first sites in the United States, and the first in Minnesota, to receive the prestigious designation as a Prostate Cancer MRI Center according to the American College of Radiology,” said Benjamin Spilseth, MD, Division Director of Thoracoabdominal Radiology and Vice Chair of Diagnostic Clinical Operations at University of Minnesota Physicians. “This designation is only awarded to centers that can demonstrate superior image quality, technique, and image interpretation according to the highest standards. In addition, it indicates that we have a superior program for following and tracking outcomes, which are highly accurate in comparison to national benchmarks.”
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) provides increasingly accurate visualization of potentially significant prostate cancers. Providers at the M Health Fairview Clinics and Surgery Center were some of the first in Minnesota to offer an MRI-guided, fusion prostate biopsy. This type of biopsy uses state-of-the-art technology to produce a three-dimensional view of the prostate to better target the biopsy site, which is significantly more effective at detecting prostate cancer.
Department of Urology Chair and urologist at the University of Minnesota, Dr. Christopher Warlick, expressed his enthusiasm about the clinic’s new designation. “We are very excited to have achieved this designation. It is well known that the quality of MRI images and experience of MRI readers greatly impacts the usefulness of MRI in management of prostate cancer. This designation recognizes us as a destination center for prostate cancer imaging and image-guided interventions. It also validates the hard work required for providing state-of-the-art prostate cancer care.”
Additionally, “The designation as a Prostate Cancer MRI Center is a testament to the multi-department efforts at the University of Minnesota to develop and implement state-of-the-art methods to improve the management of prostate cancer,” said Greg Metzger, PhD, professor with the Graduate Programs in Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering at the University of Minnesota.
The ACR, founded in 1924, is one of the largest and most influential medical associations in the United States. The ACR devotes its resources to make imaging and radiation therapy safe, effective and accessible to those who need it. Its 36,000 members include radiologists, radiation oncologists, medical physicists, interventional radiologists and nuclear medicine physicians.
