Thermography is not a Feasible Method for Breast Cancer Screening

Boris Brkljačić, Damir Miletić, Francesco Sardanelli

Abstract


Breast cancer is a common malignancy causing high mortality in developed countries. Due to the contribution of mammographic screening and improvements in therapy the mortality rate from breast cacer has decreased considerably in countries with screening programs running for decades.

An imaging-based early detection of breast cacner improves the treatment outcome. Mammography is generally established not only as diagnostic, but also a screening tool, while breast ultrasound plays a major role in the diagnostic setting in distinguishing solid from cystic lesions and in guiding tissue sampling. Several indications are established for contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging.

Thermography was never validated as a screening tool and the only study performed long ago demonstrated very poor results. Thermography cannot be proclaimed as a screening method without any evidence whatsoever.


Keywords*


breast cancer, imaging, screening, mammography, ultrasound, MRI, thermography

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