Comparison of X-ray mammography and ultrasound in the diagnosis of suspected breast lesions / 中国辐射卫生

ABSTRACT

Objective To evaluate and compare the diagnostic efficiency of X-ray mammography and breast ultrasound for suspected breast lesions. Methods A total of 80 female patients with suspected breast lesions diagnosed by X-ray mammography or breast ultrasound were selected as the study subjects. The histopathological testresults served as the gold standard, and the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), and accuracy of X-ray mammography and breast ultrasound for the diagnosis of breast lesions were estimated and compared. Results Among the 80 female patients with suspected breast lesions, 57 patients were histopathologically diagnosed with breast cancer and 23 patients with benign breast lesions. The sensitivity, specificity, NPV, PPV, and accuracy of X-ray mammography for the diagnosis of suspected breast lesions in women were 63.16%, 73.91%, 44.74%, 85.71%, and 66.25%, respectively, and those of breast ultrasound were 78.95%, 21.74%, 29.41%, 71.43%, and 62.50%, respectively. There were no significant differences between X-ray mammography and breast ultrasound for the diagnosis of suspected breast lesions in women in terms of sensitivity (χ2 = 3.45, P > 0.05), NPV (χ2 = 1.15, P > 0.05), PPV (χ2 = 2.92, P > 0.05), and accuracy (χ2 = 0.25, P > 0.05). However, specificity showed a significant difference between X-ray mammography and breast ultrasound (χ2 = 12.55, P < 0.01). Conclusion A comparable accuracy of X-ray mammography and breast ultrasound is found for the diagnosis of suspected breast lesions in women. However, X-ray mammography presents a significantly higher specificity than breast ultrasound for the diagnosis of suspected breast lesions in women.