Work

The Role of Diffusion-Weighted Imaging in Characterizing Benign and Malignant Breast Lesions: A Retrospective Study

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: Introduction Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) is a promising magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique for differentiating between benign and malignant breast lesions. This study set out to assess the diagnostic utility of DWI and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values in the characterization of breast lesions. Materials and methods A retrospective analysis comprised 30 patients with breast lesions who had breast MRI with DWI. The histopathological findings, ADC readings, and conventional MRI features were all analyzed. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis method was utilized to assess the diagnostic accuracy of DWI. Results Out of the 30 lesions, 22 (73.3%) were benign and eight (26.7%) were malignant. Malignant lesions exhibited significantly lower ADC values (p < 0.001) compared to benign lesions. An ADC cutoff value of 1.1 × 10-3 mm2/s was optimal for differentiating benign from malignant lesions, yielding 90.81% sensitivity, 91.51% specificity, and 91.5% accuracy. Conclusion Combining DWI with quantitative ADC analysis is a helpful, non-invasive method for the characterization of breast lesions. It shows excellent diagnostic accuracy in identifying benign and malignant lesions, which may cut down on pointless biopsies and help with patient management.

Source: Cureus

DOI: 10.7759/cureus.66472

Authors: Stany Jerosha, Sakthi Ganesh Subramonian, Arunkumar Mohanakrishnan, Karthik Krishna Ramakrishnan, Paarthipan Natarajan

Institution: Saveetha University

Language: English

Topic: MRI in cancer diagnosis

Subfield: Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging

Field: Medicine

Domain: Health Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: diamond

OpenAlex ID: W4401475333