Applications

1424 – MR guided biopsy procedures for diagnosis of prostate cancer

Find out about the service or technology in this application and the medical condition it addresses. You can also view the application documents, the deadlines for providing consultation input and the outcome of the application when the MSAC process is complete.

  • Status Complete
  • Type New application
  • Pre-PASC consultation -
  • Pre-MSAC consultation -
  • Outcome Not supported

Application details

Reason for application

New MBS item.

Service or technology in this application

The Urological and Radiological procedure of MR-guided prostate biopsy. Instead of the current random biopsy protocols in use since circa 1990, only a small number of biopsies are required directly into the tumour. This can be done:

(a) in the MRI machine (MRGB) in read time, or by
(b) using previously acquired MR images and fusing them with a special ultrasound machine.

Type: Investigative

Medical condition this application addresses

In patients with a raised or concerning PSA and under clinical suspicion for prostate cancer, sent by the GP to a specialist Urologist, imaging the prostate with mpMRI before biopsy has major patient benefits, increases patient QALY’s, and is cheaper than the current diagnostic pathway. The number of men that need any biopsy at all by about 50%.The number of men diagnosed with low risk cancer reduces by about 90%, preventing overtreatment and the MRI and targeted biopsy pathway is more accurate than random TRUS biopsies and also gives a better grading of the patient’s particular tumour and uses 90% less needles.

Meetings to consider this application

  • PASC meeting: 
    • 16 April 2015
    • 13 August 2015
  • ESC meeting: 7 - 8 February 2017
  • MSAC meeting: 6 - 7 April 2017