Comparison of full-field digital mammography to screen-film mammography with respect to diagnostic accuracy of lesion characterization in breast tissue biopsy specimens

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES: This study was performed to investigate whether full-field digital mammography (FFDM) is at least as accurate as screen-film mammography with respect to breast lesion characterization. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seventy-nine breast surgical specimens were obtained by means of preoperative needle localization with surgical excision from 79 patients. The specimens were imaged with both screen-film mammography and FFDM. Six radiologists specialized in breast imaging analyzed both sets of images and characterized the visualized lesions on a five-point scale: 1, definitely not malignant; 2, probably not malignant; 3, possibly malignant; 4, probably malignant; and 5, definitely malignant. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis of the data was then performed to assess for differences between modalities in the radiologists' ability to predict breast malignancy. RESULTS: The areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves for the prediction of breast malignancy in surgical biopsy specimens were not statistically significantly different for FFDM and screen-film mammography. CONCLUSION: The results demonstrate that with breast surgical specimens, FFDM is similar in diagnostic accuracy to screen-film mammography.