Breast density and diagnostic evaluation in women with abnormal screening mammography

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the volumetric breast density and conduct diagnostic evaluation of women with abnormal screening mammography. Patients and Methods: The study included 108 women with abnormal findings on screening mammography who were examined at our institution from February 2019 to July 2019. The volumetric breast density using VolparaTM and the compressed breast thickness (CBT) were measured in a total of 108 patients. The clinical features and CBT were compared using the chisquare test between women with density a or b (Non-dense group) and those with density c or d (Dense group) using chi-square tests. Results: The median age of the patients was 51.5 years, and the median CBT was 41 mm. Of the 108 women, 16 (15%) were classified into the Non-dense group and the remaining 92 (85%) into the Dense group. The median age of the women in the Dense group was 48.5 years, and there were more women under the age of 50 years. All the patients with CBT < 30 mm were classified into the Dense group. There was no significant difference in the percentage of cases in diagnostic mammography category 3-5 or the malignancy rate between the two groups. Conclusions: Among women with abnormal screening mammography, 85% were assessed as having dense breasts. Our study showed age < 50 years and/or CBT < 30 mm were frequently associated with dense breasts, and this remains a challenge to address.