Dear Women's Imaging Insider,
The benefits of digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) stand the test of time, according to a new five-year retrospective study published in Radiology. The study found DBT had better cancer detection and fewer false positives than digital mammography throughout multiple screening rounds. Read more in our Insider Exclusive.
The longevity of DBT's benefits could be just one more reason for the technology's growing popularity. In fact, another recent study found DBT identified more than twice as many cancers as full-field digital mammography alone or a combination of the two technologies. However, another study found that a 10-minute breast MRI scan found more invasive cancers in women with dense breast tissue than DBT.
In other Women's Imaging Community news, researchers have been focused on the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on breast imaging. Two recent studies demonstrated that giving radiologists access to AI-powered technology could improve breast cancer detection. In both studies, the combination of artificial and human intelligence outperformed radiologists acting alone.
AI may also help radiologists classify lesions on automated breast ultrasound (ABUS) exams. A multinational team of researchers trained a machine-learning algorithm to differentiate between benign and malignant lesions on ABUS images. The resulting AI solution improved the diagnostic performance for four out of five readers -- including three radiology residents.
While the long-term implications of AI in radiology have yet to be determined, it's looking increasingly likely that the right AI recommendation at the right time can help us mere humans do our jobs better.
Would you be open to using AI software in your daily practice? What features would be most helpful to you? Share your thoughts by email or on Twitter.
