Comparison of Mammography and Ultrasonography for Early Detection of Breast Cancer

Abstract

Aim: This systematic review is specifically aimed to compare mammography and ultrasonography in early detection of breast cancer. For this systematic review, major purpose is to compare both screening methods and also analyze the performance of supplemental ultrasonography for early detection of breast cancer. Methodology: For this systematic review, total 23 studies are included which follow the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines. Electronic articles from year 2007 to from year 2017 on PUB Med, online Willey library, and Science Direct site were searched by using keywords related to sonographic and mammography imaging for breast cancer. Results: Out of 23 studies, 12 studies are conducted on women with dense breasts. Twenty studies performed their imaging with hand held ultrasound (HHUS). Out of twenty-three studies, sixteen studies followed BI-RADS procedures. In eleven studies that used joint methods, it was observed that mammography (MAM) has 65% whereas ultrasound (US) has 68% efficiency for early detection of breast cancer. 88% area under a cover (AUCs) among MAM and 98% among US imaging was observed. No major difference was found in sensitivity and specificity of both techniques. Conclusion: Study concludes that Ultrasound is more efficient to diagnose factors suggestive of breast cancer that cannot be detected on mammography. It also has the potential to evaluate cancer among dense breast women but unfortunately in some cases, it may cause a high recall rate. Keywords: Breast, Cancer, Mammography, Ultrasonography, Screening.