The role of Tc99m-sestamibi scintimammography in combination with the triple assessment of primary breast cancer.
OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study was to evaluate if Tc99m-sestamibi scintimammography in addition to the triple assessment consisting of clinical examination, mammography, breast ultrasonography and fine needle aspiration cytology (FNA) enhances the diagnosis of breast cancer and helps in avoiding unnecessary operative biopsies.


METHODS
Pre-operational scintimammography was performed within 2 weeks of operation to 46 consecutive patients with abnormal findings in clinical breast examination, mammography or ultrasonography. Three patients had abnormalities in both breasts. Histological diagnosis was obtained in all 49 cases.


RESULTS
The histological diagnosis was benign in 18 (37%) cases and malignant in 31 (63%) cases. The overall sensitivity of scintimammography was 77% and the specificity was 61%. The sensitivity of scintimammography was 95% in invasive ductal carcinoma, 50% in invasive lobular carcinoma and 25% in ductal carcinoma in situ. Scintimammography showed 100% sensitivity in cases with invasive carcinoma, with highly suspicious findings for malignancy in the other examinations. The sensitivity was 63% in cases with indeterminate or contradictory findings in mammography, ultrasonography and FNA.


CONCLUSIONS
Adding scintimammography to the triple assessment does not seem to be helpful in the diagnosis of breast abnormalities because of low sensitivity in malignant cases with a challenging diagnosis by mammography, ultrasonography and FNA, and because of low overall specificity.
Leidenius
M H K
MH
Breast Surgery Unit, Maria Hospital, Helsinki, Finland. marjut.leidenius@hus.fi
Leppänen
E A
EA
Tykkä
H T
HT
von Smitten
K A J
KA
D000368:Aged; D001707:Biopsy, Needle; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008327:Mammography / Q000379:methods*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011856:Radiographic Image Enhancement; D011877:Radionuclide Imaging; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D017256:Technetium Tc 99m Sestamibi; D014463:Ultrasonography / Q000379:methods
D017256:Technetium Tc 99m Sestamibi