Targeted Ultrasound Alone Found to Be Accurate Breast Imaging Modality

WEDNESDAY, April 5, 2023 (HealthDay News) — For women aged 30 years or older with focal breast complaints, targeted ultrasound (US) is an accurate breast imaging modality, according to a study published online April 4 in Radiology.

Linda Appelman, M.D., from the Radboud University Medical Center in the Netherlands, and colleagues examined whether an imaging protocol consisting of targeted US alone is feasible for diagnostic workup in women with localized symptoms and assessed the supplemental value of digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) in a prospective study enrolling 1,961 women aged 30 years or older with focal breast complaints. Targeted US was evaluated first, and biopsy was performed if necessary, followed by DBT. The frequency of breast cancer detected by DBT when US was negative was examined as the primary outcome.

The researchers found that 81 percent of the women had normal or benign findings and 90 percent had a definitive accurate diagnosis. During initial workup, 204 cancers were detected. With US alone, the frequency of malignancy was 10 percent (sensitivity and specificity, 98.5 and 90.8 percent, respectively). Three unobserved malignant lesions at the complaint site and 0.41 percent of incidental malignant findings were identified with DBT in participants without symptomatic cancer.

“The added value of digital breast tomosynthesis for assessment of the focal breast complaint is low when compared with targeted US alone,” the authors write.

Several authors disclosed financial ties to the pharmaceutical and medical device industries.

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