A COMPLEMENTARY ROLE FOR TL-201 SCINTIGRAPHY WITH MAMMOGRAPHY IN THE DIAGNOSIS OF BREAST-CANCER

Physical examination and mammography are currently the only proven and reliable methods of early detection of breast cancer. Although both p rocedures are highly sensitive, their limited specificity often requir es surgical biopsy in order to differentiate between malignant and ben ign lesions. The purpose of this prospective study is to investigate t he diagnostic specificity of thallium imaging for breast cancer and to determine its efficacy as a complement to mammography. Two groups wer e studied: Group A: Patients found to have breast abnormalities and sc heduled for biopsy or surgery and Group B: Patients who were suspected to have a recurrence of cancer after mastectomies or lumpectomies. In Group A, thallium scans of 32 breasts in 30 patients were performed p rior to biopsy or surgery, yielding pathological diagnoses of 31 breas ts in 29 patients. Results for Group A included seven true-positive th allium scans, twenty-two true-negative scans, two false-negative scans , and one false-positive scan. In Group B, seven patients were scanned to evaluate subcutaneous nodules for breast cancer following mastecto my or lumpectomy. Results for Group B included five true-positive scan s, one true-negative scan, one false-negative scan and no false-positi ve scans. Thallium breast scanning was shown to have high specificity for cancer (specificity 96% and sensitivity 80%), suggesting that this technique should be evaluated in additional patient studies to determ ine its role in clinical situations.