Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate automated breast ultrasound (ABUS) compared to hand-held traditional ultrasound (HHUS) in the visualisation and BIRADS characterisation of breast lesions.
Materials and methods: From January 2016 to January 2017, 1,886 women with breast density category C or D (aged 48.6±10.8 years) were recruited. All participants underwent ABUS and HHUS examination; a subcohort of 1,665 women also underwent a mammography.
Results: The overall agreement between HHUS and ABUS was 99.8 %; kappa=0.994, p<0.0001. Two cases were graded as BI-RADS 1 in HHUS, but were graded as BIRADS 4 in ABUS; biopsy revealed a radial scar. Three carcinomas were graded as BI-RADS 2 in mammography but BI-RADS 4 in ABUS; two additional carcinomas were graded as BI-RADS 2 in mammography but BI-RADS 5 in ABUS. Two carcinomas, appearing as a well-circumscribed mass or developing asymmetry in mammography, were graded as BI-RADS 4 in mammography but BI-RADS 5 in ABUS.
Conclusions: ABUS could be successfully used in the visualisation and characterisation of breast lesions. ABUS seemed to outperform HHUS in the detection of architectural distortion on the coronal plane and can supplement mammography in the detection of non-calcified carcinomas in women with dense breasts.
Key points: • The new generation of ABUS yields comparable results to HHUS. • ABUS seems superior to HHUS in detecting architectural distortions. • In dense breasts, supplemental ABUS to mammography detects additional cancers.
Keywords: Automated breast ultrasound system; Breast cancer; Breast density; Breast ultrasonography; Digital mammography.