Dr. Cherie Kuzmiak and colleagues explored how well radiologists could image lesions with both modalities in a population of women going to biopsy. The study included 25 women, who all underwent breast imaging using a dedicated ultrasound system that allowed both handheld breast ultrasound and automated breast volumetric scanning (ABVS) to be performed with the same imaging parameters. Kuzmiak's group asked five radiologists to review the randomized cases, comparing breast ABVS results with those of the handheld exam.
There were 30 biopsied lesions, all of which were masses. Seven of these were malignant. Across all lesions regardless of size or final pathology, there was no significant difference between the two modalities in the readers' BI-RADS classification, probability of malignancy, sensitivity, or specificity. For malignant lesions, the radiologists' confidence scores between the two modalities were not significantly different, but ABVS did boost readers' confidence in lesion shape and margins in the benign cases, according to the researchers.
Because the reading radiologists' confidence was equal between the two modalities, ABVS shows promise for decreasing the use of handheld breast ultrasound imaging, the group concluded.
