Digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) has really stepped up to bring breast cancer screening to a new level, where false negatives are reduced and cancer detection is improved. A recent study has found that there are a number of advantages with DBT over traditional digital mammography.
The study, published in Radiology, looked to determine if screening with DBT is “associated with lower false-negative rates, detection of cancers with more favorable prognoses and improved performance outcomes versus digital mammography”.
With a total of more than 380,000 screenings included in the study, nearly 184,000 were DBT and nearly 197,000 were digital mammography screenings. The DBT screenings trended lower for overall false-negative examinations. by the conclusion of the study, they had determined that screenings with DBT “improve sensitivity and specificity and reveal more invasive cancers with fewer nodal or distant metastases.”
Furthermore, they found that cancers identified with DBT were “more often invasive, had fewer positive lymph nodes and distant metastases and had lower odds of a false-negative finding of advanced cancer compared with digital mammography.”
For radiologists who have yet to connect with this technology, the “magic” of it is in the X-ray camera that moves in an arc over the breast, taking images from a variety of angles to produce a 3D-like image that can be meticulously scanned over, millimeter by millimeter, to detect the finest of abnormalities.
According to the article in Radiology, one of the researchers said, “using false negative cancer rates is a way to get an idea of how a tool can affect morbidity/mortality in a more reasonable time frame than a randomized clinical trial.”
New Tech
If you’re looking to create even more improvements in your screenings, consider what cloud-based vendors have to offer. At OffSite Image Management, some of the best viewing technology in the United States can be accessed, including mammography, ultrasound, CT, MRI and DBT.
The following are some of the advantages you will realize when you partner with OffSite:
- Hanging Protocols
Automatic on-screen handing on up to four high resolution displays. - Implant Blocker
Automatic implant blocker makes it easier for the eye to quickly adapt to the luminance of the breast tissue. - CAD
Support of GE, Siemens, Fuji, Hologic, VuComp and Cyclopus - Semantic Interoperability
Allows for optimal on-screen hanging. Automatically flip Hologic and DBT & MG studies. - Reference Lines
Referencing between MLO and CC, as well as reference lines between MG and US - Measurements and Annotations
Distance ROI (polygonal, circle, line or whole breast) plus histogram HU for CT
Contact us today and let’s get started on a more workflow-friendly way of managing your images.