Abstract
Introduction
Screening with digital breast tomosynthesis plus synthetic mammography (DBT+SM) increases
invasive breast cancer detection compared to digital mammography (DM). Since a reduction
in breast cancer mortality is largely based on the detection of histological grade
2 or 3 breast cancers, a comparison of the detection rates of invasive breast cancers
(iCDR), independent of the stage, of grades 2 or 3, was carried out, taking into account
breast density, after screening with DBT+SM vs. DM.
Material and Methods
The 1:1 randomized, multicenter TOSYMA study recruited participants from 7/2018 to
12/2020 in the German Mammography Screening Program. This explorative subanalysis
included 49479 participants in the DBT+SM arm and 49689 participants in the DM arm,
with complete documentation including visual density categorization (A/B: non-dense
parenchyma, C/D: dense parenchyma).
Results
The iCDR of grade 2 or 3 was 5.1 per 1000 women screened with DBT+SM vs. 3.6 ‰ screened
with DM (difference +1.5 ‰). In the case of non-dense parenchyma, the corresponding
DBT+SM rate was 4.5 ‰ (difference to DM +1.3 ‰), and in dense parenchyma it was 5.7
‰ (difference to DM +1.7 ‰).
The iCDR of grade 1 was 2.1 ‰ with DBT+SM (difference to DM +0.8 ‰). In non-dense
parenchyma, the corresponding DBT+SM rate was 1.7 ‰ (difference to DM +0.7 ‰), in
dense parenchyma it was 2.6 ‰ (difference to DM +1.0 ‰).
Conclusion
When screening with DBT+SM, invasive breast cancer detection rates of grade 2 or 3
tumors are higher than with DM. Detection rates and their differences are also higher
in women with dense than non-dense parenchyma. These detection rates and their differences
are consistently higher for DBT+SM and DM than those for grade 1 cancers. The explorative
analyses of this large, randomized trial indicate that DBT+SM screening increases
the detection of prognostically more relevant breast cancers.
Keywords
Breast cancer - mammography screening - digital breast tomosynthesis - breast density
- tumor grade
