3TMRI and mpMRI

I had a very difficult time scheduling a mpMRI at Duke. My urologist ordered the mpMRI and I called after a week or so to see if it had been scheduled. The scheduler confirmed I was scheduled for a prostate MRI. I asked if that was a mpMRI and she said she had never heard of it. She asked one of the techs if he knew what it was and he didn’t. I called the cancer information desk and they had never heard of it but sent me to radiology who didn’t know either. I had one there 9 years ago so I know they do mpMRI’s. The radiologist who read my report then is still there and has written several papers on mpMRI and fusion biopsy. I called his office and spoke to his admin. She had never heard of it. I recently messaged my MO there and asked the question and his nurse said yes, I’m scheduled for mpMRI.

Today I called Atrium Health to see if they did mpMRI. I know they do fusion biopsies so I figured they might have mpMRI. They checked with the MRI tech and he said they use T3 MRI which is the same as mpMRI. I cant find anything in my searches that validates what he said. Is he correct?

I see no reason to travel to Duke if Atrium has the equipment I will likely need. I know they do PSMA/MRI which, from what I read, is better than PSMA/CT. They do fusion biopsies. Duke does not have any salvage treatments that interest me except brachytherapy, but the RO is inexperienced in my opinion. Atrium may have a RO who does salvage brachytherapy. I’ll have to research that. It’s the mpMRI that I cant seem to get a straight answer.

So, is the 3TMRI the same as mpMRI?

A search provided:

When it comes to prostate MRI, of course the power of the magnet is important. Magnet strength is measured in units called Tesla, or T. Most conventional magnets are 1.5T, but stronger magnets such as ours are 3T. At either strength, there are two types of prostate MRI that can be done:

biparametric MRI (bpMRI) uses two scanning sequences called T2-weighted (the T stands for Transverse Relaxation Time, not Tesla) and diffusion weighted imaging,

multiparametric MRI (mpMRI) uses the two listed above, plus dynamic contrast enhancement that uses injection of a contrast agent to look for tumor blood flow.

3T magnets produce images with higher resolution in order to detect differences between normal vs. cancerous prostate tissue. Also, mpMRI provides more information than bpMRI because of the contrast agent. Although mpMRI scans take longer than bpMRI scans, authorities agree that 3T mpMRI is the ideal imaging method for PCa.

So 3T and mpMRI are two different things, equipment used and method used. I suppose you could ask if they will use a 3T machine and the mpMRI procedure agent? The doctor would order the mpMRI and that would be done on the equipment, probably a 3T machine if the facility has one. Doctor should insure that you are sent to the right place.

Not sure why someone could not explain that unless they were confused or stupid.

The real issue here is not the equipment used or even the test performed: it is the quality of the doctor who will read the test. Just as with every other doctor dealing with PCa, whether it is a surgeon ,a pathologist, or a radiologist, it makes a difference how skilled they are.

I would be suspicious of any hospital conducting an MRI if the people involved don't know even the basic rudiments

After several searches trying to find if mpMRI actually uses a different machine than standard MRI, I found this: "High-quality mpMRI scans rely on MRI scanners being configured in a specific way". I assume this means that centers that do mpMRI's have dedicated special MRI equipment. Other centers like Atrium that I have interest in use their 3T MRI, and while it might be good for prostate scans, it is not the same as mpMRI.