The added advantage of automated breast ultrasound to mammographically detected different breast lesions in patients with dense breasts

Abstract

Background: Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed malignancy in women worldwide. Women with dense breast tend to have 15–25% lifetime risk of breast cancer due to decrease of mammographic sensitivity. Automated breast ultrasound (ABUS) is a new promising tool for detection of breast lesions masked by dense glandular tissue at mammography. Results: The sensitivity of digital mammography in detecting breast lesions was 60.7%, specificity 91.6%, PPV 85%, NPV 75%, and accuracy 78%. The sensitivity of ABUS in detecting breast lesions was 92.86%, specificity 77.78%, PPV 76.47%, NPV 93.33%, and accuracy 84.38%. The sensitivity of handheld ultrasound (HHUS) in detecting breast lesions was 89.29%, specificity 88.89%, PPV 86.21%, NPV 91.43%, and accuracy 89.06%. Conclusion: The sensitivity of ABUS in detecting breast lesions was much higher than mammography in dense breast while the digital mammography (DM) had higher specificity. So, implementation of both DM and ABUS to get benefit of DM specificity as well as ABUS sensitivity were highly recommended.