Five common breast cancer screening methods

Currently, the medical examination methods for breast cancer are different. In order to let everyone better understand and know the examination methods of breast cancer , the following will introduce the common examination methods of breast cancer.

In general, the common breast cancer screening methods are:

1. Near-infrared breast scan

The method uses the shadows formed by hemoglobin's absorption of near-infrared rays to examine the breast. Since cancerous tissue and surrounding blood vessels are rich, the amount of hemoglobin is relatively increased, and after absorbing infrared light, shadows of different gray levels are formed. At the same time, it can be seen that there are abundant blood vessels in and around the tumor, and the blood vessels are thick, tortuous, and increased in number. There are interruptions, cross signs, and other images for diagnosis, and the accuracy rate can reach about 90%. This is currently the most common method for examining breast cancer.

2. LCD thermal image inspection

Thermal imaging is one of the more common breast cancer examination methods. It uses the fact that tumor cells metabolize quickly and produce more heat than surrounding tissues without glycolysis, thus showing a hot area at the tumor site. The image is larger than the tumor, with uneven edges, and abnormal blood vessel patterns that are thicker, tortuous, and have increased numbers and branches can also be seen. However, thermal imaging has a low detection rate for smaller tumors, and there are many false positives and false negatives.

3. Cytological examination

1) Exfoliative cytology examination: For cases with nipple discharge, the fluid can be examined by smear cytology. The positive rate for early intraductal carcinoma with nipple discharge is 50%, and sometimes it can be detected before the tumor can be palpated. When nipple erosion is suspected of Paget's disease, a scraping or print of the eroded area can be taken for cytology examination, with a positive rate of 70% to 80%.

2) Fine needle aspiration cytology uses the low adhesion of cancer cells to aspirate tumor cells and take pictures, and its accuracy rate is relatively high.

4. Histological examination

A biopsy is necessary for a definitive diagnosis, unless the tumor is very large, in which case an excisional biopsy is generally preferred. Su Yao et al. reported a 15-year follow-up of 142 cases of breast cancer, including 75 cases of excisional biopsy and 67 cases of incisional biopsy. The 5-, 10-, and 15-year survival rates of the excisional biopsy group were significantly higher than those of the incisional biopsy group (p<0.05).

5. Ultrasound examination

Ultrasound examination is more valuable for those with dense breast tissue, but its main purpose is to distinguish whether the mass is cystic or solid. Ultrasound imaging is often more accurate in determining the size of the mass, and can therefore be used to compare the efficacy of non-surgical treatments (such as chemotherapy, radiotherapy, endocrine therapy, etc.). This is also a commonly used method for breast cancer examination.

The above is an introduction to the examination methods for breast cancer. I hope the above content can be helpful to you. If you have any questions, you can contact our online experts and they will give you detailed answers.

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