Diagnostic value of radiological breast imaging in a non-screening population

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Abstract
The aim of this study was to assess the diagnostic performance of breast imaging in the diagnosis of breast cancer in a non‐screening population. In a consecutive set of patients referred for mammography in one year, the results of palpation and radiological breast imaging were scored on a 5‐point grading scale and linked to pathology as gold standard after a follow up period of one year. The diagnostic performance was studied by logistic regression analysis and ROC‐curves. There were 1,944 breast examinations in 1,890 patients and 3,816 breasts. Pathology results reported 118 malignancies in 115 women. With a cut‐off point between benign and uncertain benign a sensitivity of 89% and a specificity of 98% was found for radiological imaging. ROC‐curves showed a significant increase in diagnostic performance when radiology was added to results of palpation and age (p = 0.007). Radiological imaging tests have a large diagnostic value in the detection of breast cancer in addition to palpation and age. A sensitivity close to 100% could be reached.