Clinical significance of 99mTc-MIBI breast imaging in the diagnosis of early breast cancer.

OBJECTIVE

To find an effective, sensitive, specific and noninvasive diagnostic method for cancer.

METHODS

109 masses from 102 patients with breast lesions smaller than 2 cm in diameter were divided into three groups to undergo 99mtechnetium-methoxyisobutylisonitrile (99mTc-MIBI) imaging. The results were compared with their pathology. Twenty cases without breast lesions were selected as a control group. Abnormal density of 99mTc-MIBI in the breast and a threshold level 10% higher than that in the counterpart of the healthy breast was regarded as positive.

RESULTS

Of 32 breast cancers, positive imaging appeared in 25. Negative imaging was found in 31 of 38 benign breast lesions. Of 39 nonpalpable breast lesions, five cases were breast cancers and 34 cases benign. Positive MIBI imaging appeared in all of the breast cancers, while in the benign lesions, four were positive and 30 negative. No positive imaging was found in the control group. The diagnostic accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value of 99mTc-MIBI were 88.4%, 89.2%, 88.0%, 75.0% and 95.3%, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

99mTc-MIBI imaging had high sensitivity and accuracy in the diagnosis of breast cancer, as well as in the differentiation between benign and malignant breast lesions. It could provide reliable information in confirming the diagnosis in patients with clinically suspected breast cancer.