Diaphanography in Breast Carcinoma

Abstract

Histologically classified carcinoma was present in 110 breasts of 108 symptomatic women. The results of diaphanography (DPG) were correlated with those obtained by clinical examination (CE), mammography (M) and cytology (C). A tumour was palpable in 87 cases (79.1 %). A false negative diagnosis was made in 17 cases (15.5%) using DPG, in 13 cases (11.8%) using M and in 15 cases (13.6%) using C, but in 12 of the latter cases (10.9%) the specimen was not representative. The validity of the findings using DPG and M was also analysed. The calculations were based on the results obtained from the present investigation and from a study of diaphanography in 163 cases of benign breast disorders. For DPG the sensitivity was 85 per cent, the specificity 91 per cent, the positive predictive value 86 per cent and the negative predictive value 90 per cent. For M the sensitivity was 86 per cent, the specificity 80 per cent, the positive predictive value 75 per cent and the negative predictive value 91 per cent. The specificity for diaphanography was significantly different from mammography (p<0.05). The use of both M and DPG reduced the number of false negatives from 11.8 per cent to 5.5 per cent. In conclusion, DPG has been demonstrated to be a useful adjunct to CE and M.