A Prospective Pilot Study on Use of Liquid Crystal Thermography to Detect Early Breast Cancer
Background: Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women. While mammography is the standard for early detection in women older than 50 years of age, there is no standard for younger women. The aim of this prospective pilot study was to assess liquid crystal contact thermography, using the Braste...
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doaj-a4bb932292424e36afe8da7b352fa45b2020-11-25T02:50:30ZengSAGE PublishingIntegrative Cancer Therapies1534-73541552-695X2020-04-011910.1177/1534735420915778A Prospective Pilot Study on Use of Liquid Crystal Thermography to Detect Early Breast CancerDiana Hodorowicz-Zaniewska MD0Stefano Zurrida MD1Agnieszka Kotlarz MD2Piotr Kasprzak MD3Jan Skupień MD, PhD4Anna Ćwierz MD5Tadeusz J. Popiela MD, PhD6Adrian Maciejewski MD7Paweł Basta MD, PhD8University Hospital in Krakow, PolandUniversity of Milan, Milan, ItalyJagiellonian University, Krakow, PolandLower Silesia Oncology Center, Wroclaw, PolandJagiellonian University, Krakow, PolandLudwik Rydygier Memorial Specialized Hospital, Krakow, PolandUniversity Hospital in Krakow, PolandPoznan University of Medical Sciences, Poznan, PolandUniversity Hospital in Krakow, PolandBackground: Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women. While mammography is the standard for early detection in women older than 50 years of age, there is no standard for younger women. The aim of this prospective pilot study was to assess liquid crystal contact thermography, using the Braster device, as a means for the early detection of breast cancer. The device is intended to be used as a complementary tool to standard of care (sonography, mammography, etc). Patients and Methods: A total of 274 consecutive women presenting at Polish breast centers for prophylactic breast examination were enrolled to receive thermography; 19 were excluded for errors in thermographic image acquisition. The women were divided according to age (n = 135, <50 years; n = 120, ≥50 years). A control population was included (n = 40, <50 years; n = 23, ≥50 years). The primary endpoint, stratified by age group, was the C -statistic for discrimination between breast cancer and noncancer. Results: In women with abnormal breast ultrasound (n = 95, <50 years; n = 87, ≥50 years), the C -statistic was 0.85 and 0.75, respectively ( P = .20), for discrimination between breast cancer and noncancer. Sensitivity did not differ ( P = .79) between the younger (82%) and older women (78%), while specificity was lower in the older women (60% vs 87%, P = .025). The false-positive rate was similar in women with normal and abnormal breast ultrasound. Positive thermographic result in women with Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BIRADS) 4A on ultrasound increased the probability of breast cancer by over 2-fold. Conversely, a negative thermographic result decreased the probability of cancer more than 3-fold. Breast size and structure did not affect the thermography performance. No adverse events were observed. Conclusions: Thermography performed well in women <50 years of age, while its specificity in women ≥50 years was inadequate. These promising findings suggest that the Braster device deserves further investigation as a supporting tool for the early detection of breast cancer in women younger than 50 years of age.https://doi.org/10.1177/1534735420915778 |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Diana Hodorowicz-Zaniewska MD Stefano Zurrida MD Agnieszka Kotlarz MD Piotr Kasprzak MD Jan Skupień MD, PhD Anna Ćwierz MD Tadeusz J. Popiela MD, PhD Adrian Maciejewski MD Paweł Basta MD, PhD |
spellingShingle |
Diana Hodorowicz-Zaniewska MD Stefano Zurrida MD Agnieszka Kotlarz MD Piotr Kasprzak MD Jan Skupień MD, PhD Anna Ćwierz MD Tadeusz J. Popiela MD, PhD Adrian Maciejewski MD Paweł Basta MD, PhD A Prospective Pilot Study on Use of Liquid Crystal Thermography to Detect Early Breast Cancer Integrative Cancer Therapies |
author_facet |
Diana Hodorowicz-Zaniewska MD Stefano Zurrida MD Agnieszka Kotlarz MD Piotr Kasprzak MD Jan Skupień MD, PhD Anna Ćwierz MD Tadeusz J. Popiela MD, PhD Adrian Maciejewski MD Paweł Basta MD, PhD |
author_sort |
Diana Hodorowicz-Zaniewska MD |
title |
A Prospective Pilot Study on Use of Liquid Crystal Thermography to Detect Early Breast Cancer |
title_short |
A Prospective Pilot Study on Use of Liquid Crystal Thermography to Detect Early Breast Cancer |
title_full |
A Prospective Pilot Study on Use of Liquid Crystal Thermography to Detect Early Breast Cancer |
title_fullStr |
A Prospective Pilot Study on Use of Liquid Crystal Thermography to Detect Early Breast Cancer |
title_full_unstemmed |
A Prospective Pilot Study on Use of Liquid Crystal Thermography to Detect Early Breast Cancer |
title_sort |
prospective pilot study on use of liquid crystal thermography to detect early breast cancer |
publisher |
SAGE Publishing |
series |
Integrative Cancer Therapies |
issn |
1534-7354 1552-695X |
publishDate |
2020-04-01 |
description |
Background: Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women. While mammography is the standard for early detection in women older than 50 years of age, there is no standard for younger women. The aim of this prospective pilot study was to assess liquid crystal contact thermography, using the Braster device, as a means for the early detection of breast cancer. The device is intended to be used as a complementary tool to standard of care (sonography, mammography, etc). Patients and Methods: A total of 274 consecutive women presenting at Polish breast centers for prophylactic breast examination were enrolled to receive thermography; 19 were excluded for errors in thermographic image acquisition. The women were divided according to age (n = 135, <50 years; n = 120, ≥50 years). A control population was included (n = 40, <50 years; n = 23, ≥50 years). The primary endpoint, stratified by age group, was the C -statistic for discrimination between breast cancer and noncancer. Results: In women with abnormal breast ultrasound (n = 95, <50 years; n = 87, ≥50 years), the C -statistic was 0.85 and 0.75, respectively ( P = .20), for discrimination between breast cancer and noncancer. Sensitivity did not differ ( P = .79) between the younger (82%) and older women (78%), while specificity was lower in the older women (60% vs 87%, P = .025). The false-positive rate was similar in women with normal and abnormal breast ultrasound. Positive thermographic result in women with Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BIRADS) 4A on ultrasound increased the probability of breast cancer by over 2-fold. Conversely, a negative thermographic result decreased the probability of cancer more than 3-fold. Breast size and structure did not affect the thermography performance. No adverse events were observed. Conclusions: Thermography performed well in women <50 years of age, while its specificity in women ≥50 years was inadequate. These promising findings suggest that the Braster device deserves further investigation as a supporting tool for the early detection of breast cancer in women younger than 50 years of age. |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1177/1534735420915778 |
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