Cone-Beam CT faster, potentially more accurate than conventional mammography

Cone-beam breast CT employs a large area x-ray beam in conjunction with a flat panel x-ray detector to scan and generate 3D images of the breast. The scanner is placed below a table on which the patient lies prone with the breast protruding through an opening. Only the breast is exposed to radiation resulting in improved image quality and sparing the rest of the patient’s body from unnecessary radiation exposure. The scan can be completed in less than one minute with a single complete rotation of the x-ray tube-detector gantry around the breast. Unlike conventional CT, the patient is not moved through the gantry during scanning.

For the study, the researchers used cone-beam CT on 12 mastectomy specimens. The researchers discovered that structured noise on cone-beam CT was minimal because of the absence of overlapping tissue; that breast anatomy was well resolved on all images as skin, adipose, and glandular regions; and that microcalcifications within cancers were clearly shown. In addition, they discovered that the detection of cancers based on morphologic assessment of tissue structures could potentially be improved compared with mammography because of the lack of overlapping glandular tissue.

Conventional 2D mammography is currently the most prevalent imaging technique for screening and diagnosis of breast cancers. However, the 2D projection images can overlap normal tissue, soft tissue masses, and calcifications and affect the detection and visualization of cancer. “Despite the advantage of excellent spatial resolution, conventional mammography is unable to diagnose all cancers, especially early cancers in dense breasts, and cancers in high risk women such as genetic carriers,” said Wei Tse Yang, MD, lead author of the study.

The researchers believe that cone-beam CT may potentially be used to replace mammography in screening and diagnostic breast imaging. “In addition to overcoming the problem of overlapping breast tissue, cone-beam breast CT has the ability to provide true 3D images of the breast that may help depict the 3D morphology and distribution of lesions, and that may provide incremental benefit in the differentiation of abnormalities from background breast tissue. In addition, the multiplanar high-resolution surveys it provides are at a radiation dose comparable to routine mammography,” said Dr. Yang.

Besides those benefits of cone-beam breast CT, the researchers pointed out others, as well. ”Scanning using this method takes less than one minute. This compares with 40 minutes for breast MRI, and 10 minutes for mammography. It also eliminates the discomfort associated with compression during mammography and the problem of claustrophobia during MRI,” said Dr. Yang.

The full results of this study appear in the December issue of the American Journal of Roentgenology, published by the American Roentgen Ray Society.

Source: American Roentgen Ray Society

3-D mammograms, cameras may improve breast exams
(AP) -- Remember peeking through a View-Master? Scientists are using the same concept behind the classic kids' toy to try to see mammograms in 3-D. The goal: A better way to check for breast cancer in women with breasts too dense for today's mammograms to give a clear picture.
Kylie's breast cancer triggered a surge of over 30 percent in breast imaging of low-risk women
Kylie's breast cancer triggered a surge of over 30 per cent in breast imaging of low risk women, says new University of Melbourne study.
Adding ultrasound to mammography may improve breast cancer detection in high-risk women
The addition of an ultrasound examination to mammography for women at high-risk of breast cancer resulted in a higher rate of cancer detection, but also increased the number of false-positive results, according to a study in the May 14 issue of JAMA.
Adding ultrasound screening to mammography brings benefits, risks
Adding a screening ultrasound examination to routine mammography reveals more breast cancers than mammography alone, according to results of a major new clinical trial. The trial, however, also found that adding an ultrasound exam also increases the rate of false positive findings and unnecessary biopsies.
Breast cancer tumors grow faster in younger women
A new approach to estimating tumour growth based on breast screening results from almost 400,000 women is published today BioMed Central’s open access journal, Breast Cancer Research. This new model can also estimate the proportion of breast cancers which are detected at screening (screen test sensitivity). It provides a new approach to simultaneously estimating the growth rate of breast cancer and the ability of mammography screening to detect tumours.
Women 80 and older benefit from mammography, but few are screened
In the first study to assess mammography in women 80 and older, researchers found that having regular mammograms significantly decreases the risk of being diagnosed with late-stage breast cancer, but only about one-fifth of women in this age group receive them regularly.
Mammography may be beneficial to all women, regardless of age
According to researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, mammography, the gold-standard for breast cancer screening and early detection, has shown to significantly reduce the risk of being diagnosed with advanced stage breast cancer in women over the age of 80, an age group currently without clear guidelines recommending regular screenings.
MRI's high false positive rate has little impact on women's choice of preventive mastectomy
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) falsely detects breast cancer in five out of every six positive scans according to new research into the use of MRI for women with a high, inherited risk of developing the disease. However, this high rate of false positives does not have a major impact on a woman’s decision whether or not to have a prophylactic mastectomy.

Cone-Beam CT faster, potentially more accurate than conventional mammography

Related stories:

News discussion: