Comparison of Supplemental Breast Cancer Screening Outcomes for Automated Versus Handheld Ultrasound

Area of Science:

• Radiology
• Medical Imaging
• Breast Cancer Screening

Background:

• State laws mandate breast density notification, increasing supplemental ultrasound use.
• Automated Breast Ultrasound (ABUS) offers potential for improved reproducibility and reduced operator dependency compared to Hand-held Ultrasound (HHUS).

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the performance of ABUS versus HHUS in screening women with dense breasts.
• Evaluate diagnostic accuracy and efficiency metrics between ABUS and HHUS.

Main Methods:

• Observational study using data from 21,110 HHUS and 4,218 ABUS exams (2017-2020).
• Data collected from 27 radiology facilities within the Breast Cancer Surveillance Consortium (BCSC).
• Compared abnormal interpretation rate, follow-up recommendations, biopsy rates, cancer detection, and positive predictive values.

Main Results:

• ABUS demonstrated a significantly lower abnormal interpretation rate (14.9% vs. 19.2%) and short-interval follow-up recommendation rate (3.0% vs. 14.6%) compared to HHUS.
• ABUS also showed a lower false-positive initial assessment rate (14.6% vs. 19.1%).
• No significant differences were observed in biopsy recommendation rates or cancer detection rates between ABUS and HHUS.

Conclusions:

• Automated Breast Ultrasound (ABUS) is associated with fewer abnormal interpretations and short-interval follow-up recommendations than HHUS.
• ABUS maintains a similar cancer detection rate to HHUS.
• ABUS represents an effective alternative for screening women with dense breasts.