3D imaging machine helps physicians identify cancer earlier, more frequently

Since her facility started using 3D digital imaging, Dr. Diane LoRusso has seen remarkable improvements in the overall effectiveness of mammography screenings.


Looking at a 3D mammogram of a dense breast, LoRusso was able to make out a spider-like mass that looks only slightly different than the other white streaks and dots around it. If she had been looking at a 2D mammogram of the same breast, the mass, which would turn out to be cancer, would essentially be impossible to see, she explained in a Harrison Patch interview.

The 3D imaging is performed during the same compression as standard mammography with no noticeable different for the patient. It captures thin section digital images at three different angles: Up and down, left to right and layer-by-layer. This enables physicians like LoRusso to detect potential cancers and help distinguish harmless abnormalities from real tumors, which means fewer biopsies and false positives and less additional diagnostic work.

Rye Radiology in Rye Brook, New York, USA began using the technology in July 2012. The 3D digital imaging takes 10 seconds and finds 40% more invasive breast cancers than traditional 2D mammography alone. The facility is one of few that currently offer the 3D technology, according to the Patch article.

Read the full Harrison Patch article.
View more information on Rye Radiology’s 3D digital mammography.

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