Will 3D imaging avert more cancer deaths or accelerate overtreatment?
Becker's Healthcare December 10, 2024
Medical experts are questioning whether digital breast tomosynthesis, also known as 3D mammography, will contribute to lowering the breast cancer death rate or normalize the overtreatment of cancers that may never have progressed, The New York Times reported Dec. 9.
“By the time we know the answer, [digital breast tomosynthesis] will already be the default technology,” Ilana Richman, MD, assistant professor at the Yale School of Medicine in New Haven, Conn., told the Times.
Federal data shows that more than 90% of all U.S. breast imaging facilities offer the technology, which uses multiple X-ray image “slices” to create a 3D reconstruction of the breast. Dr. Richman said the layered image can reveal masses hidden behind other tissues, the Times...