With more than 600,000 Americans dying each year from cancer, advancements in technology used for detection are critical. According to an article published in Radiology, digital breast tomography (DBT) technology has been associated with lower interval cancer rates and earlier detection than older radiology technology.
According to the article, nearly 15,000 women screened with DBT, digital mammography and Malmo breast tomosynthesis screening trial were analyzed for a five-year period. The decrease in interval cancer rates shown was a possible reflection of the improved detection of rapidly-growing cancers. A researcher was quoted as saying their study “suggests that there is an effect of DBT on interval cancer rates in population screening and that it could translate into additional screening benefits.”
DBT Advancements
Two years ago, Harvard Medical School published an article about how women in their 40s should consider switching from DM to DBT. The article covered how a review of more than 170,000 screening mammograms using DM and DBT found that the DBT advantages were most pronounced for women in their 40s. DBT was better at finding cancer in women, particularly those with high breast density. Cancers are more difficult to see in dense tissue, but with DBT, dense tissue doesn’t present as much of a challenge.
The FDA approved DBT in 2011, so it has been around for a decade but continues to gain more attention thanks to findings like these. Also of note is that patients who are screened with DBT have fewer callbacks regardless of age.
Gaining Access to Better Technology
For some healthcare facilities, converting to DBT has been blocked due to the cost of it. This fact has been a big reason why it hasn’t achieved widespread adoption, especially in rural areas where budgets are often limited.
Fortunately, there are cloud-based options available for better mammography technology. At OffSite Image Management, we offer MAMMO – one of the best mammography viewing solutions in the U.S.
Our solutions for viewing and processing mammography, ultrasound, CT, MRI and DBT include all common image processing functions, including image comparison measurements and more.
The advanced processing features our clients enjoy include the following:
- Tomosynthesis cine + MIP creation
- Reference lines between MLO and CC images
- Mammography CAD support of virtually any vendor
- Reference lines between MG and US
You can sign up for this technology using our SaaS model, where you get unlimited upgrades, unlimited updates, software support and training.
Advanced Features
Adopting OffSite’s MAMMO solutions means you also get access to technology such as implant blocker, which makes it easier for the eye to adapt to images where an implant is present, on-screen hanging protocols, CAD support, semantic interoperability and much more.
Contact us at OffSite and get more information about how you can significantly improve your approach to mammography while meeting your budgetary goals.