A Study of Two Patients with Advanced Breast Cancers Who Had Previously Undergone Regular Breast Cancer Screening by Ultrasound

Abstract

Ultrasonography is already known to be effective for detecting tumors in dense breast tissue, and a useful adjunct to mammography. We studied two patients with advanced breast cancers (over T2), who had previously undergone annual breast cancer screening by ultrasonography, and here we report the important points that should be kept in mind when performing breast screening by ultrasound.
Case 1: This 45-year-old woman had undergone annual breast ultrasound screening for three years at our center. The last examination showed a large invasive mass as a low-echo area with an indistinct border occupying the entire upper part (quadrants A and C area) of the right breast. Histologically, this was found to be papillotubular carcinoma. Retrospective examination of the last ultrasonogram showed a mottled pattern and low-echo area with an indistinct border in both breasts, and further examinations had not been considered necessary.
Case 2: This 44-year-old woman visited our hospital after she noticed a lump in her breast, and was diagnosed as having invasive ductal carcinoma. She had previously undergone annual ultrasound screening for about two years, and no signs of malignancy had been detected, as in case 1.
In these patients, the lesions could have been overlooked during the previous ultrasound screenings, as it is difficult to detect non-mass-forming carcinoma using this imaging modality. It is therefore very important to compare previous ultrasonograms and to record the images systematically, as they can be very helpful for future diagnostics.