The following article outlines a subset of my academic reasearch and was published in Radiology: Imaging Cancer in February of 2024.
Freitas V, Li X, Scaranelo A, Au F, Kulkarni S, Ghai S, Taeb S, Bubon O, Baldassi B, Komarov B, Parker S, Macsemchuk CA, Waterston M, Olsen KO, Reznik A. Breast Cancer Detection Using a Low-Dose Positron Emission Digital Mammography System. Radiol Imaging Cancer. 2024 Mar;6(2):e230020. doi: 10.1148/rycan.230020. PMID: 38334470; PMCID: PMC10988332.
Abstract
Purpose To investigate the feasibility of low-dose positron emission mammography (PEM) concurrently to MRI to identify breast cancer and determine its local extent.
Materials and Methods In this research ethics board–approved prospective study, participants newly diagnosed with breast cancer with concurrent breast MRI acquisitions were assigned independently of breast density, tumor size, and histopathologic cancer subtype to undergo low-dose PEM with up to 185 MBq of fluorine 18–labeled fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG). Two breast radiologists, unaware of the cancer location, reviewed PEM images taken 1 and 4 hours following 18F-FDG injection. Findings were correlated with histopathologic results. Detection accuracy and participant details were examined using logistic regression and summary statistics, and a comparative analysis assessed the efficacy of PEM and MRI additional lesions detection (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT03520218).
Results Twenty-five female participants (median age, 52 years; range, 32–85 years) comprised the cohort. Twenty-four of 25 (96%) cancers (19 invasive cancers and five in situ diseases) were identified with PEM from 100 sets of bilateral images, showcasing comparable performance even after 3 hours of radiotracer uptake. The median invasive cancer size was 31 mm (range, 10–120). Three additional in situ grade 2 lesions were missed at PEM. While not significant, PEM detected fewer false-positive additional lesions compared with MRI (one of six [16%] vs eight of 13 [62%]; P = .14).
Conclusion This study suggests the feasibility of a low-dose PEM system in helping to detect invasive breast cancer. Though large-scale clinical trials are essential to confirm these preliminary results, this study underscores the potential of this low-dose PEM system as a promising imaging tool in breast cancer diagnosis.
ClinicalTrials.gov registration no. NCT03520218
Keywords: Positron Emission Digital Mammography, Invasive Breast Cancer, Oncology, MRI