Xeromammography in early detection of breast cancer

Sixty-four carcinomas were detected in 1,315 women examined by xeromammography in 1973. Seventeen carcinomas were occult and 14 were detected in women referred for clinically benign lesions. The remaining 33 carcinomas were diagnosed on the basis of both clinical and roentgenographic examination. There were three false-negatives. Two of these lesions were obscured by very dense fibrocystic disease. The third lesion was called benign due to an error in interpretation. There were eight false-positives; four of these demonstrated intraductal hyperplasia and asymmetry, which may be a precursor to frank malignant change. Xeromammography is suggested as a highly accurate means of detecting occult mammary carcinomas and clarifying the nature of clinically suspected lesions.