Trends in Clinical Breast Density Assessment From the Breast Cancer Surveillance Consortium
Year: 2018
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Changes to mammography practice, including revised Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS) density classification guidelines and implementation of digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT), may impact clinical breast density assessment. We investigated temporal trends in clinical breast density assessment among 2 990 291 digital mammography (DM) screens and 221 063 DBT screens interpreted by 722 radiologists from 144 facilities in the Breast Cancer Surveillance Consortium. After age-standardization, 46.3% (95% CI = 44.1% to 48.6%) of DM screens were assessed as dense (heterogeneously/extremely dense) during the BI-RADS 4th edition era (2005-2013), compared to 46.5% (95% CI = 43.8% to 49.1%) during the 5th edition era (2014-2016) (P = .93 from two-sided generalized score test). Among DBT screens in the BI-RADS 5th edition era, 45.8% (95% CI = 42.0% to 49.7%) were assessed as dense (P = .77 from two-sided generalized score test) compared to 46.5% (95% CI = 43.8% to 49.1%) dense on DM in BI-RADS 5th edition era. Results were similar when examining all four density categories and age subgroups. Clinicians, researchers, and policymakers may reasonably expect stable density distributions across screened populations despite changes to the BI-RADS guidelines and implementation of DBT.
DOI: 10.1093/jnci/djy210
Institutions: University of Vermont, University of California, San Francisco, Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute, University of Illinois Chicago, University of Washington, Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice, Dartmouth Cancer Center, University of California, Davis
Language: English
Subfield: Pulmonary and Respiratory Medicine
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
Funders: American Cancer Society, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Kaiser Permanente, Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, University of Washington, Dartmouth College, Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute, National Institutes of Health, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, University of California, San Francisco, Norris Cotton Cancer Center, Audrey and Theodor Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, National Cancer Institute, University of California Davis School of Medicine
Awards: G3220809187, G430308920, G4371717236, Vermont PROSPR Research Center (VPRC), G5546442440, G561767967, COMPARATIVE EFFECTIVENESS OF BREAST IMAGING MODALITIES: A NATURAL EXPERIMENT, G68425887, G7925465395, G9000120004, G9000346625, Advanced Breast Imaging Adoption & Screening Access Among Vulnerable Women
OpenAlex ID: W2909740829