COVID-19 Vaccination-Related Uptake on FDG PET/CT: An Emerging Dilemma and Suggestions for Management.

As mass COVID-19 vaccination is underway, radiologists are encountering transient FDG uptake in normal or enlarged axillary, supraclavicular, and cervical lymph nodes after ipsilateral deltoid vaccination. This phenomenon may confound interpretation in patients with cancer undergoing FDG PET/CT. In this article, we present our institutional approach for management of COVID-19 vaccine-related lymphadenopathy on FDG PET/CT according to early experience. We suggest performing PET/CT at least 2 weeks after vaccination in patients with a cancer for which interpretation is anticipated to be potentially impacted by the vaccination but optimally 4-6 weeks after vaccination given increased immunogenicity of mRNA vaccines and potentially longer time for resolution than lymphadenopathy after other vaccines. PET/CT should not be delayed when clinically indicated to be performed sooner. Details regarding vaccination should be collected at the time of PET/CT to facilitate interpretation. Follow-up recommendations for postvaccination lymphadenopathy are provided, considering the lymph node's morphology and likely clinical relevance. Consideration should be given to administering the vaccine in the arm contralateral to a unilateral cancer to avoid confounding FDG uptake on the side of cancer. Our preliminary experience and suggested institutional approach should guide radiologists in management of patients with cancer undergoing PET/CT after COVID-19 vaccination.

Digital Breast Tomosynthesis: State of the Art.

This topical review on digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) is provided with the intent of describing the state of the art in terms of technology, results from recent clinical studies, advanced applications, and ongoing efforts to develop multimodality imaging systems that include DBT. Particular emphasis is placed on clinical studies. The observations of increase in cancer detection rates, particularly for invasive cancers, and the reduction in false-positive rates with DBT in prospective trials indicate its benefit for breast cancer screening. Retrospective multireader multicase studies show either noninferiority or superiority of DBT compared with mammography. Methods to curtail radiation dose are of importance. (©) RSNA, 2015.

Effect of needle gauge and lobe laterality on parenchymal liver biopsy outcome: a retrospective analysis.

PURPOSE: To analyze the effect of lobe selection, needle gauge, and number of passes on procedure outcomes in terms of specimen length and post-procedure complications. METHODS: In this HIPAA-compliant, IRB-approved retrospective study, the data from 771 ultrasound-guided adult parenchymal liver biopsies were analyzed. Post-procedure complications were assigned a 3-point rating scale. Associations between specimen length and post-procedure complications with lobe laterality, needle gauge, and number of passes were analyzed. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to analyze the likelihood for achieving a specimen length of at least 2 cm. RESULTS: Post-procedure complications were not associated with lobe laterality, needle gauge, and number of passes (p > 0.3). Specimen length was associated with the number of passes dichotomized at the study mean (p = 0.007), but not with lobe laterality or needle gauge (p > 0.2). After adjusting for lobe laterality and needle gauge, procedures with 1 or 2 passes were associated with a higher likelihood of obtaining a 2 cm or longer specimen (OR 2.469; CI 1.08-5.63, p = 0.0315) than procedures with 3 or more passes, possibly due to poorer sample quality. After adjusting for lobe laterality, an 18-gauge needle was associated with higher odds of a biopsy procedure with 1 or 2 passes (OR 3.665; CI 1.93-6.95, p < 0.0001) than a 20-gauge needle. CONCLUSIONS: Lobe laterality was not associated with specimen length or post-procedure complications. An 18-gauge needle compared to a 20-gauge needle could reduce the need for a procedure with more than 2 passes. There was no difference in post-procedure complications between the two needle sizes.

Renal biopsy: comparative yield of cranial versus caudal needle trajectory. An ex vivo analysis.

AIM: To compare the diagnostic quality of tissue cores obtained using cranial and caudal angulation of the renal biopsy needle. Comparison was made in terms of the number of glomeruli and proportion of renal cortex with medulla on pathological analysis. METHODS: A total of 40 desktop, renal biopsies were performed on 10 ex vivo porcine kidneys using two different targeting angles. Biopsies were obtained from the 'lower pole' of each kidney using both cephalad and caudad angulations of the biopsy needle. Ten 18-gauge semi-automated cutting needles were used during twenty biopsies obtained per each angle; two biopsies were made using each needle. The resulting samples were collected in 40 separate and labelled formalin containers according to the used targeting angle. Two pathologists blinded to the corresponding biopsy angles reviewed the samples in consensus. RESULTS: Samples with a cephalad targeting angle had a mean length of 14.5 mm with mean number of 9.6 glomeruli and average 82% cortex and 18% medulla. Samples obtained using a caudad needle angulation had a mean length of 14.1 mm with mean number of 11.6 glomeruli and on the average 99% cortex. The P-values comparing the two samples were as follows: 0.63 comparing the mean length of cores, 0.08 for number of glomeruli and 0.002 comparing the proportion of cortex. CONCLUSION: The proportion of cortical tissue in the core biopsy specimen using the caudad angle approach was statistically significantly higher, compared with the cephalad needle trajectory.

The Current State of Timeliness in the Breast Cancer Diagnosis Journey: Abnormal Screening to Biopsy.

There are several steps involved in a breast cancer diagnosis, starting from the initial abnormal screening mammogram. Each step from the additional imaging to a biopsy provokes anxiety. Timely attention to these appointments will not only help allay anxiety but also provide better care. While breast facilities routinely audit their performance, currently timeliness is not one of the audit parameters. The role of timeliness as a robust quality tool is gaining attention. In this study, we review the timeline of care at our facility over a 1-year period (October 2021- September 2022) and compare them with those reported by National Quality Measures for Breast Centers (NQMBC). Race, ethnicity, location, and type of facility affect the outcome of care and contribute to delays in providing care. In this manuscript, we outline some of the major factors. Societal guidelines outlining some metrics for timeliness may be a useful first step.

Artificial Intelligence in Breast X-Ray Imaging.

This topical review is focused on the clinical breast x-ray imaging applications of the rapidly evolving field of artificial intelligence (AI). The range of AI applications is broad. AI can be used for breast cancer risk estimation that could allow for tailoring the screening interval and the protocol that are woman-specific and for triaging the screening exams. It also can serve as a tool to aid in the detection and diagnosis for improved sensitivity and specificity and as a tool to reduce radiologists' reading time. AI can also serve as a potential second 'reader' during screening interpretation. During the last decade, numerous studies have shown the potential of AI-assisted interpretation of mammography and to a lesser extent digital breast tomosynthesis; however, most of these studies are retrospective in nature. There is a need for prospective clinical studies to evaluate these technologies to better understand their real-world efficacy. Further, there are ethical, medicolegal, and liability concerns that need to be considered prior to the routine use of AI in the breast imaging clinic.

Changes in Stage at Presentation among Lung and Breast Cancer Patients During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic altered access to healthcare by decreasing the number of patients able to receive preventative care and cancer screening. We hypothesized that, given these changes in access to care, radiologic screening for breast and lung cancer would be decreased, and patients with these cancers would consequently present at later stages of their disease. STUDY DESIGN: This is a retrospective cross-sectional study of 2017 to September 2021 UMass Memorial Tumor Registry data for adult breast and lung cancer patients. Changes in stage at presentation of breast and lung cancer during the COVID-19 pandemic were measured, defined as before and during COVID-19. RESULTS: There were no statistically significant changes in the overall stage of presentation before or during the COVID-19 pandemic for either breast or lung cancer patients. Analysis of case presentation and stage during periods of COVID-19 surges that occurred during the time of this study compared with prepandemic data demonstrated a statistically significant decrease in overall presentation of breast cancer patients in the first surge, with no other statistically significant changes in breast cancer presentation. A nonstatistically significant decrease in lung cancer presentation was seen during the initial surge of COVID-19. There was also a statistically significant increase in early-stage presentation of lung cancer during the second and third COVID-19 surges. CONCLUSIONS: In the 2 years after the COVID-19 pandemic, we were not able to demonstrate stage migration at presentation of breast and lung cancer patients to later stages despite decreases in overall presentation during the initial 2 years of the COVID pandemic. An increase in early-stage lung cancer during the second and third surges is interesting and could be related to increased chest imaging for COVID pneumonia.

Savi-Scout Radar Localization: Transitioning From the Traditional Wire Localization to Wireless Technology for Surgical Guidance at Lumpectomies.

Breast-conserving surgery or lumpectomy requires localization of the lesion prior to surgery, which is traditionally accomplished by imaging-guided wire localization. Over the last decade, alternatives to wire localization have emerged. This work reviews the literature on one such wireless technology, SaviScout radar (SSR) system, and shares our experience with using this technology for presurgical tumor localization. The SSR surgical guidance system is non-radioactive. The radiologist implants a reflector device in the breast under mammography or ultrasound guidance at any time prior to surgery. The placement of this reflector can be confirmed from the cadence of a handheld percutaneous probe of a handpiece and console system. Results from several studies show that the surgical outcomes from SSR and wire-localization are similar. SSR provides operational advantages as the scheduling for reflector placement by radiologists is decoupled from surgery, but at an increased cost compared to wire-localization.

Value of BI-RADS 3 Audits.

Objectives: BI-RADS 3 is an established assessment category in which the probability of malignancy is equal to or less than 2%. However, monitoring adherence to imaging criteria can be challenging and there are few established benchmarks for auditing BI-RADS 3 assignments. In this study, we explore some parameters that could serve as useful tools for quality control and clinical practice management. Materials and Methods: This retrospective study covered a 4-year period (Jan 2014-Dec 2017) and included all women over 40 years who were recalled from a screening exam and had an initial assignment of BI-RADS 3 (probably benign) category after diagnostic workup. A follow-up period of 2 years following the assignment of BI-RADS 3 was used for quantitative quality control metrics. Results: Among 135,765 screening exams, 13,453 were recalled and 1,037 BI-RADS 3 cases met inclusion criteria. The follow-up rate at 24 months was 86.7%. The upgrade rate was 7.4% (77/1,037) [CI: 5.9-9.2%] and the PPV3 was 33.8% (26/77) [CI: 23.4-45.5%]. The cancer yield was 2.51% (26/1,037) [CI: 1.64-3.65%] and did not differ (p=0. 243) from the 2% probability of malignancy. The initial BI-RADS3 per screening exam and per recall from screening were 0.76% (1,037/135,765) [CI: 0.72-0.81%] and 7.7% (1,037/13,453) [CI: 7.26-8.17%], respectively. Conclusion: Regular audit of BIRADS 3 metrics has the potential to provide additional insights for clinical practice management. Data from varied clinical settings with input from an expert committee could help establish benchmarks for these metrics.

Unusual complication after left-lobe liver biopsy for diffuse liver disease: severe bleeding from the superior epigastric artery.

OBJECTIVE: Imaging-guided parenchymal liver biopsy for diffuse liver disease is increasingly performed via an epigastric route from the left lobe, as opposed to the more traditional intercostal right-sided approach. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We conducted a retrospective analysis of all liver biopsies performed at our department for 3 years (July 2007 through June 2010). A total of 1028 liver biopsies were performed during this period. Of these, 776 biopsies were performed for diffuse medical liver disease. Electronic medical records were reviewed for any documented complications. RESULTS: We identified six cases (0.8%) of documented significant bleeding after 776 biopsies. All bleeding complications were associated with the left-sided epigastric approach. No documented case of major bleeding from the right-sided approach was recorded during the same period. We describe four patients with severe bleeding complications in which classic imaging features were noted on CT, pointing to injury of the superior epigastric artery as the possible cause of the bleeding. CONCLUSION: It is important to recognize the subtle CT signs of superior epigastric artery bleeding because the traditional femoral approach with angiography of the hepatic and portal vessels may not reveal active bleeding. The superior epigastric artery, rather than the hepatic arteries, should be evaluated. A brachial approach for the angiogram may be the more optimal technique.

Ultrasound Imaging Morphology is Associated with Biological Behavior in Invasive Ductal Carcinoma of the Breast.

OBJECTIVES: Ultrasound (US) is commonly used for diagnostic evaluation of breast lesions. The objective of this study was to investigate the association between US imaging morphology from routine radiologists' interpretation and biological behavior such as receptor status and tumor grade determined from histopathology in invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC). MATERIAL AND METHODS: This retrospective study included 453 patients with pathology-verified diagnosis of IDC who had undergone US imaging and had surgery over a 5-year period. US and surgical pathology reports were reviewed and compiled. Correlation analyses and age-adjusted multivariable models were used to determine the association between US imaging morphology and receptor status, tumor grade, and germ line mutation of the breast cancer genes (BRCA1 and BRCA2). The odds ratio (OR), area under receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC), and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were obtained. RESULTS: The likelihood for high-grade cancer increased with size (OR: 1.066; CI: 1.042-1.091) and hypo-echogenicity (OR: 2.044; CI: 1.337-3.126), and decreased with angular or spiculated margins (OR: 0.605; CI: 0.393-0.931) and posterior acoustic shadowing (OR: 0.352; CI: 0.238-0.523). These features achieved an AUC of 0.799 (CI: 0.752-0.845) for predicting high-grade tumors. The likelihood for Estrogen Receptor-positive tumors increased with posterior acoustic shadowing (OR: 3.818; CI: 2.206-6.607), angulated or spiculated margins (OR: 2.596; CI: 1.159-5.815) and decreased with US measured tumor size (OR: 0.959; CI: 0.933-0.986) and hypoechoic features (OR: 0.399; CI: 0.198- 0.801), and achieved an AUC of 0.787 (CI: 0.733-0.841). The likelihood for Progesterone Receptor-positive tumors increased with posterior acoustic shadowing (OR: 2.732; CI: 1.744-4.28) and angulated or spiculated margins (OR: 2.618; CI: 1.412-4.852), and decreased with US measured tumor size (OR: 0.961; CI: 0.937-0.985) and hypoechoic features (OR: 0.571; CI: 0.335-0.975), and achieved an AUC of 0.739 (CI: 0.689-0.790). The likelihood for Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive tumors increased with heterogeneous echo texture (OR: 2.141; CI: 1.17- 3.919) and decreased with angulated or spiculated margins (OR: 0.408; CI: 0.177-0.944), and was marginally associated with hypoechoic features (OR: 2.101; CI: 0.98-4.505) and circumscribed margins (OR: 4.225; CI: 0.919-19.4). The model with the aforementioned four US morphological features and achieved an AUC of 0.686 (CI: 0.614-0.758). The likelihood for triple-negative breast cancers increased with hypo-echogenicity (OR: 2.671; CI: 1.249-5.712) and decreased with posterior acoustic shadowing (OR: 0.287; CI: 0.161-0.513), and achieved an AUC of 0.739 (CI: 0.671- 0.806). No statistical association was observed between US imaging morphology and BRCA mutation. CONCLUSION: In this study of over 450 IDCs, significant statistical associations between tumor grade and receptor status with US imaging morphology were observed and could serve as a surrogate imaging marker for the biological behavior of the tumor.

Robust breast cancer detection in mammography and digital breast tomosynthesis using an annotation-efficient deep learning approach.

Breast cancer remains a global challenge, causing over 600,000 deaths in 2018 (ref. 1). To achieve earlier cancer detection, health organizations worldwide recommend screening mammography, which is estimated to decrease breast cancer mortality by 20-40% (refs. 2,3). Despite the clear value of screening mammography, significant false positive and false negative rates along with non-uniformities in expert reader availability leave opportunities for improving quality and access4,5. To address these limitations, there has been much recent interest in applying deep learning to mammography6-18, and these efforts have highlighted two key difficulties: obtaining large amounts of annotated training data and ensuring generalization across populations, acquisition equipment and modalities. Here we present an annotation-efficient deep learning approach that (1) achieves state-of-the-art performance in mammogram classification, (2) successfully extends to digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT; '3D mammography'), (3) detects cancers in clinically negative prior mammograms of patients with cancer, (4) generalizes well to a population with low screening rates and (5) outperforms five out of five full-time breast-imaging specialists with an average increase in sensitivity of 14%. By creating new 'maximum suspicion projection' (MSP) images from DBT data, our progressively trained, multiple-instance learning approach effectively trains on DBT exams using only breast-level labels while maintaining localization-based interpretability. Altogether, our results demonstrate promise towards software that can improve the accuracy of and access to screening mammography worldwide.

Positive Predictive Value of Tomosynthesis-guided Biopsies of Architectural Distortions Seen on Digital Breast Tomosynthesis and without an Ultrasound Correlate.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of the study was to determine the positive predictive value (PPV) of architectural distortions (AD) observed on digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) and without an ultrasound (US) correlate. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this single-institution, retrospective study, patients who underwent DBT-guided biopsies of AD without any associated findings on digital mammography (DM) or DBT, and without a correlate on targeted US exam, over a 14-month period were included in this study. All patients had DM and DBT and targeted US exams. The PPV was computed along with the exact 95% confidence limits (CL) using simple binomial proportions, with histopathology as the reference standard. RESULTS: A total of 45 ADs in 45 patients met the inclusion criteria. Histopathology indicated 6/45 (PPV: 13.3%, CL: 5.1-26.8%), ADs were malignant, including one high-risk lesion that was upgraded at surgery. ADs were appreciated only on DBT in 12/45 (26.7%) patients, and on both DBT and DM in 33/45 (73.3%) patients, and the corresponding PPV was 25% (3/12, CL: 5.5-57.2%) and 9.1% (3/33, CL: 1.9-24.3%), respectively. In all analyses, the observed PPV significantly exceeded the 2% probability of malignancy for Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System-3 diagnostic categories (P < 0.004). CONCLUSIONS: The PPV of malignancy in DBT detected AD without an US correlate in our series of 45 cases was 6/45 (13.3%). In the absence of an US correlate, the PPV of AD is lower than that mentioned in prior literature but exceeds the 2% threshold to justify DBT-guided biopsy.

Unifocal Invasive Lobular Carcinoma: Tumor Size Concordance Between Preoperative Ultrasound Imaging and Postoperative Pathology.

BACKGROUND: We systematically analyzed the extent of disease in unifocal invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC) using ultrasonography, with the histopathologic findings as the reference standard. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In the present single-institution retrospective study, 128 cases of ILC were identified during a 5-year period. After exclusions, the analyzed cohort included 66 cases. Ultrasound measurements of the tumor extent along 3 axes were obtained. The tumor size was determined as the largest extent among the 3 axes and the tumor volume by ellipsoidal approximation. Pathology review provided the tumor size and volume. Correlation and regression analyses of tumor size and volume from the ultrasound and pathologic examinations were performed. The tumor stage from the ultrasound and pathologic examinations were used for the concordance analyses. RESULTS: The median and quartiles (Q1, Q3) of tumor size from ultrasonography and pathology were 12.5 mm (Q1, 9 mm; Q3, 19 mm) and 17 mm (Q1, 12 mm; Q3, 25 mm), respectively. The corresponding data for tumor volume were 0.52 cm3 (Q1, 0.18 cm3; Q3, 1.92 cm3) and 1.04 cm3 (Q1, 0.45 cm3; Q3, 2.49 cm3). The ultrasound measurements correlated with the pathology-reported tumor size (Spearman ρ = 0.678; P < .0001) and volume (Spearman ρ = 0.699; P < .0001). The ultrasound-measured size and volume differed from the pathology-reported size and volume (P < .0001; Wilcoxon signed ranks test). Concordance between the clinical tumor size stage from ultrasound (cT) and pathology tumor size stage (pT) varied with the pT stage (P = .0003, Fisher's exact test), with the greatest concordance rate of 95.7% (95% confidence limit, 85.2%-99.5%) observed for pT1 tumors. CONCLUSION: Ultrasonography underestimates the tumor size and volume, with the underestimation increasing for larger tumors. Hence, the concordance rate in tumor size stage between ultrasonography and pathology is tumor size dependent, with the greatest concordance rate observed for pT1 tumors.

The Relevance of Ultrasound Imaging of Suspicious Axillary Lymph Nodes and Fine-needle Aspiration Biopsy in the Post-ACOSOG Z11 Era in Early Breast Cancer.

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES: Evaluation of nodal involvement in early-stage breast cancers (T1 or T2) changed following the Z11 trial; however, not all patients meet the Z11 inclusion criteria. Hence, the relevance of ultrasound imaging of the axilla and fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNA) in early-stage breast cancers was investigated. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this single-center, retrospective study, 758 subjects had pathology-verified breast cancer diagnosis over a 3-year period, of which 128 subjects with T1 or T2 breast tumors had abnormal axillary lymph nodes on ultrasound, had FNA, and proceeded to axillary surgery. Ultrasound images were reviewed and analyzed using multivariable logistic regression to identify the features predictive of positive FNA. Accuracy of FNA was quantified as the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve with axillary surgery as reference standard. RESULTS: Of 128 subjects, 61 were positive on FNA and 65 were positive on axillary surgery. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of FNA were 52 of 65 (80%), 54 of 63 (85.7%), 52 of 61(85.2%), and 54 of 67 (80.5%), respectively. After adjusting for neoadjuvant chemotherapy between FNA and surgery, a positive FNA was associated with higher likelihood for positive axillary surgery (odds ratio: 22.7; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 7.2-71.3, P < .0001), and the accuracy of FNA was 0.801 (95% CI: 0.727-0.876). Among ultrasound imaging features, cortical thickness and abnormal hilum were predictive (P < .017) of positive FNA with accuracy of 0.817 (95% CI: 0.741-0.893). CONCLUSIONS: Ultrasound imaging and FNA can play an important role in the management of early breast cancers even in the post-Z11 era. Higher weightage can be accorded to cortical thickness and hilum during ultrasound evaluation.