Scintimammography with dedicated breast camera detects and localizes occult carcinoma.
This study assessed the utility of scintimammography using a standard gamma-camera and a dedicated breast camera as an adjuvant to mammography and clinical examination.


METHODS
The study population comprised 37 patients with dense breasts and a family or personal history of breast cancer. The subjects had no suggestive clinical or mammographic findings. After intravenous administration of (99m)Tc-sestamibi, the patients were imaged using a conventional gamma-camera and a dedicated breast camera that allowed breast compression during image acquisition. Images were interpreted independently by 2 reviewers. All patients with positive scintimammography findings underwent biopsy.


RESULTS
Dedicated breast camera results were positive in 13.5% (5/37) of patients. Biopsy of these 5 patients yielded 3 carcinomas: an infiltrating lobular carcinoma, a ductal carcinoma in situ, and an infiltrating tubular carcinoma. These 3 carcinomas were undetectable by clinical breast examination or mammography, even on retrospective review. Only one of these, the tubular carcinoma, was readily detectable by the standard gamma-camera.


CONCLUSIONS
Scintimammography using a dedicated breast camera may augment mammography and clinical breast examination for the subset of women who have dense breast tissue and are at high risk of breast cancer.
Coover
Leonard R
LR
Department of Nuclear Medicine, Hamot Medical Center, Erie, Pennsylvania, USA. Leonard.Coover@hamot.org
Caravaglia
Gina
G
Kuhn
Phyllis
P
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology / Q000556:secondary*; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology / Q000556:secondary*; D019544:Equipment Failure Analysis; D005260:Female; D015902:Gamma Cameras; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009382:Neoplasms, Unknown Primary / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology; D011877:Radionuclide Imaging / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity