A critical analysis of xeroradiography of the breast.
Xeroradiography is a process that utilizes an electrostatically charged selenium-coated aluminum plate to record the radiographic image instead of the familiar X-ray film, and employs the same basic principles of positioning and exposure technique used in conventional film mammography. The latent image of charges remaining on the selenium plate after exposure to X-rays is developed with a coating of blue toner powder, and transferred to a special plastic-coated paper for interpretation and permanent storage. Resolution in xeroradiography is adequate and, combined with the characteristic edge enhancement, allows clear visualization of the fine internal structures of the breast. Xeroradiography is proposed to have the following advantages over film mammography: easier to interpret, requires less radiation, greater detail, a more rapid, easier, dry developing process, and is probably more accurate. Reports from several centers of xeroradiography reveal increased confidence in mammographic interpretation and in increase in the diagnosis of minimal breast cancers.
D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008327:Mammography; D008875:Middle Aged; D014986:Xeroradiography