Ritse Mann appointed professor of Breast Radiology

Radiologist Ritse Mann has been appointed professor of Breast Radiology at Radboudumc / Radboud University. He develops imaging techniques for breast cancer that detect tumors as early as possible and help enable effective treatment.

Imaging is crucial in an effective approach to breast cancer, according to Ritse Mann. On the one hand, for screening and early diagnosis: this allows doctors to detect tumors in time and start treatment as early as possible. On the other hand, to better understand tumors and thus choose the optimal treatment. 'My goal is to reduce breast cancer to a condition that causes as little burden as possible and is no longer fatal.'

Screening with MRI

It all starts with the best possible screening. His vision? 'In the future, we will no longer use mammography; instead, all women will receive an MRI scan, because it is much more sensitive. We will perform the scan without contrast agents. A woman can sit in a chair and lean slightly forward, as we will use an open MRI scanner. And at the door, she will immediately receive the result, because AI will already have analyzed the images.'

As a professor, Mann aims to address all obstacles that still stand in the way of this future scenario. One issue is that MRI scanners can be uncomfortable for people with claustrophobia. Mann explains: 'An open scanner with low field strength could solve this issue. But this technology is not yet good enough, so we are working on it. In addition, the capacity of MRI equipment is still too limited. This scan must become easy, widely available, and affordable.'

Digital contrast agent

Mann also aims to eliminate the need for contrast agents. These require an IV, can cause allergic reactions, and are harmful to the environment. However, contrast agents do provide good tumor visibility, and radiologists are accustomed to contrast-enhanced images. That is why Mann is working on AI that can digitally add contrast based on different MRI images, without administering a contrast agent. This is called a synthetic MRI.

AI also plays an important role in scan analysis. 'The AI currently available for mammograms is very good. Yet we still use it cautiously, only to support the radiologist', Mann explains. 'But we are facing a major shortage of radiologists. I think AI will need to work much more independently and will eventually indicate in ninety percent of cases that nothing is wrong. The radiologist will then only review the remaining ten percent.' Mann and his colleagues are also developing such AI for analyzing MRI scans.

Choosing the right treatment

What about ultrasound? According to Mann, this technique is mainly suitable for targeted evaluation, for example when a woman feels a lump in her breast. 'With ultrasound, you can look very specifically at such a complaint and see the images immediately.' Additionally, ultrasound can be used for screening, but only when mammography or MRI is difficult, such as in developing countries or sparsely populated areas. Ultrasound devices are small enough to fit in a pocket.

Finally, Mann uses imaging for therapy. 'You can take a biopsy from a tumor and analyze it in pathology. That remains important, but it only shows a small part of the tumor. With imaging, you see characteristics of the entire tumor, which helps in choosing a treatment. Scans also show whether a therapy is effective or can even be stopped. I hope that, thanks to better screening, we will eventually no longer find tumors larger than one centimeter. Those can then be treated minimally invasively, making major surgeries unnecessary.'

Career

Ritse Mann studied Medicine at Utrecht University and obtained his PhD in 2010 at Radboudumc with his thesis titled 'The effectiveness of breast MRI in invasive lobular carcinoma'. He completed his medical specialist training at Radboudumc and started there in 2013 as a breast and interventional radiologist. Since 2019, he has also works part-time as a breast radiologist at the Netherlands Cancer Institute (NKI) in Amsterdam.

Internationally, Mann is chair of the scientific committee of the European Society of Breast Imaging (EUSOBI), where he works on a uniform approach to breast cancer imaging across Europe. He is also deputy editor for breast imaging for the journal Radiology. In the Netherlands, he serves as chair of the Dutch College of Breast Imaging, the association of Dutch breast radiologists. His appointment as professor and research leader has taken effect on July 1, 2026, for a period of five years.

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