EU law to restrict use of MRI scanners - Liz Lynne

6.10.29pm BST (GMT +0100) Wed 29th Mar 2006

A new EU directive will restrict the use of MRI scanners to detect early signs of cancer, Liz Lynne MEP, co-chair of MEPs Against Cancer, warned today.

The Electromagnetic Fields Directive, which comes into force in the UK in 2008, will limit the time that operators will be able to spend near MRI machines when they are in use. The directive will also prohibit new uses of MRI technology, pioneered by UK hospitals, which let doctors see how treatments are working.

Speaking in Brussels today, Liz Lynne, who was Shadow Rapporteur on the directive for the ALDE group, said:

"When this directive was going through the European Parliament, I fought unsuccessfully to have MRI scanners left out of the remit of the directive."

"The evidence from the medical profession, then as now, was overwhelmingly against restricting the use of MRI scanners. These are vital machines which can save lives; limiting their use will mean doctors resort to less successful, more dangerous procedures."

"The guidelines imposed by the directive are unnecessary and overcautious. MRI scanners pose no known health risks, and medical staff are already protected under the Medical Devices Directive."

"The advice of the medical community on this crucial issue cannot be ignored. I have been campaigning for a long time now to persuade the European Commission to revisit this directive and exempt MRI scanners from its remit, but so far to no avail."

ENDS

Notes to Editors

1. In November 2005, as the European Commission presented its 2006 work programme to the European Parliament, Liz Lynne challenged José Manuel Barroso, the President of the European Commission, on the impact of the directive on the use of MRI scanners.

2. Liz Lynne has also written to Vladimir Spidla, Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, urging him to review the directive.