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Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan to test for bile duct cancer
This test uses powerful magnetic waves to make a picture of the soft tissue
, organs and bones of your body. It will be used to look for any obstruction in your bile ducts. You may be asked to drink a liquid contrast medium that helps to give a good picture. You may also be given an injection of dye in a vein in your arm. The dye travels to your liver and helps to give a better picture.
The machine is a large, tubular ring. You will be asked to lie on your back on a hard couch that passes through the ring. With the help of a computer, pictures of slices through your body are taken. Depending on how many pictures are being taken, you may have to lie still for up to an hour in an enclosed space. If this worries you, tell the radiographer. When it is switched on the machine is very noisy, so you will be given earplugs or headphones to wear.
This is a safe technique, but patients with heart pacemakers, metal heart valves and other metal implants may not be able to undergo the test.
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