Detecting breast cancer : advanced and new technologies

Abstract

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women. This has consequently generated considerable interest in the literature with the result that Breast Cancer Screening Programs have become available in most developed countries. The aim of these screening programs is to achieve early detection of breast cancer in women who have not yet developed any symptoms. Such early detection allows early treatment, which is necessary to achieve a good treatment outcome. Treatment of early cancer results in cure in 98% of cases, while late cancer detection results in a poor outcome. Early breast cancer detection depends on the accuracy of the equipment used and on training and experience of the specialists involved. Equipment accuracy and consequently image quality play a very important role since specialist training and experience cannot compensate for poor image quality. New technologies are contributing to improved image quality and also to new parameters that help distinguish benign from malignant disease.