Dr. Samantha Zuckerman and colleagues compared recall rates generated with synthetic 2D plus DBT and conventional mammography plus DBT, and analyzed the types of lesions that were recalled. Between October 2011 and February 2013, 15,571 women were screened with the digital mammography-DBT combination. Meanwhile, 2,090 women were screened with the synthetic 2D-DBT combination between January and March 2015.
The overall recall rate for synthetic 2D-DBT was 8.3%, compared with mammography-DBT's rate of 8.8%, Zuckerman's group found. The two combinations were also comparable in terms of the type of lesion recalled.
The study results show stable recall rates and lesion types between the two combinations, which suggests that replacing conventional 2D mammography with synthesized 2D images maintains recall rates -- while also adding the benefit of reducing radiation dose, Zuckerman's team found.