False-negative mammograms - Medical, legal, and risk management implications

When breast cancer is detected by physical examination or imaging and the p atient has previously undergone a mammographic study that did not identify malignancy, the study may be considered under the category "false-negative mammogram". Some lesions cannot be seen in retrospect, some should be consi dered as subthreshold, and some are appropriately classified as missed. Alt hough little can be done to reduce delay in diagnosis secondary to the firs t category, errors in detection or diagnosis contribute to the latter two c ategories that may lend themselves to analysis and efforts at quality impro vement. Understanding conditions that influence detection and diagnostic er rors may reduce the number of false-negative mammograms.