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Breast cancer screening programmes frequently detect early, good prognosis breast cancers with significant treatment burden for patients, and associated health-cost implications. Emerging evidence suggests a role for minimally invasive techniques in the management of these patients enabling many women to avoid surgical intervention. Minimally invasive techniques include vacuum-assisted excision, cryoablation, and radiofrequency ablation. We review published evidence in relation to the risks and benefits of each technique and discuss ongoing trials. Data to date are promising, and we predict a trend towards minimally invasive treatment for early, good-prognosis breast cancer as technical skills, suitability criteria, and follow-up protocols are established. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The management of B3 lesions is both controversial and complicated. There have been recent publications regarding how best to manage this heterogeneous group particularly in light of the Marmot Review and with the advent of vacuum-assisted biopsy technique. It is recognized that B3 lesions on core biopsy can be upgraded to malignancy in up to one-third of cases, but this is predominantly to ductal carcinoma in situ or low-grade invasive tumours. The upgrade rate is mainly associated with B3 lesions with epithelial atypia. This review summarizes the current management and focuses on the proposed future management of these B3 lesions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses the significance of microcalcifications on mammography and the changes in technology that have influenced management; it also describes a pragmatic approach to investigation of microcalcification in a UK screening programme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The interpretation of digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) screening examinations is a complex task for an already overstretched workforce which has the potential to increase pressure on readers leading to fatigue and patient safety issues. Studies in non‐medical and medical settings have suggested that changes in blink characteristics can reflect fatigue. The purpose of this study is to investigate the use of blink characteristics as an objective marker of fatigue in readers interpreting DBT breast screening examinations. Methods: Twenty‐six DBT readers involved in the UK PROSPECTS trial interpreted a test set of 40 DBT cases while being observed by an eye tracking device from November 2019 to February 2021. Raw data from the eye tracker were collected and automated processing software was used to produce eye blinking characteristics data which were analysed using multiple linear regression statistical models. Results: Of the 26 DBT readers recruited, eye tracking data from 23 participants were analysed due to missing data rendering 3 participants' data uninterpretable. The mean reading time per DBT case was 2.81 min. There was a statistically significant increase in blinking duration of 0.38 ms/case as the reading session progressed (p < 0.0001). This was the result of a significant decrease in the number of ultra‐short blinks lasting ≤50 ms (p = 0.0005) and a significant increase in longer blinks lasting 51–100 ms (p = 0.008). Conclusion: Changes in blinking characteristics could serve as objective measures of reader fatigue and may prove useful in the development of DBT reading protocols. Advances in knowledge: Blink characteristics can be used as an objective measure of fatigue; however there is limited evidence of their use in radiological settings. Our study suggests that changes in blink duration and frequency could be used to monitor fatigue in DBT reading sessions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To review the clinical presentation, baseline imaging features, surgical management and final surgical pathology of metaplastic carcinoma of the breast. Methods: A total of 71 cases were identified over a 10-year period from two major UK breast cancer institutions. Imaging at diagnosis including mammography, ultrasound, MRI and CT scans and histological diagnosis were reviewed. Follow-up data including local and systemic recurrence were retrieved. Results: Of the 71 cases, 60 (84.5%) cases presented with a palpable lump. 60 (84.5%) cases showed a mass on mammography, of whom 47 (78.3%) cases were ill defined and 17.0% cases showed calcifications associated with a mass lesion. All 71 cases were seen as a mass on ultrasound. The imaging score was R3 or R4 in 26 cases and R5 in 47 cases. 16 patients underwent MRI with most (93.8%) showing a solid mass with central necrosis. No metastatic disease was seen in the 13 patients who underwent staging CT. Despite having a larger size, 50% of the cases successfully underwent breast conservative surgery. Positive axillary lymph nodes were seen in 11 (15.5%) cases. Conclusion: In this series, metaplastic cancers were palpable in 85% cases, tended to be large at the time of presentation and imaging showed characteristics of malignancy. Only 11 (15.5%) cases had nodal involvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Better markers of early response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) in patients with breast cancer are required to enable the timely identification of non-responders and reduce unnecessary treatment side-effects. Early functional imaging may better predict response to treatment than conventional measures of tumour size. The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that the change in tumour blood flow after one cycle of NACT would predict pathological response. In this prospective cohort study, dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI was performed in 35 females with breast cancer before and after one cycle of epirubicin and cyclophosphamide-based NACT (EC90). Estimates of tumour blood flow and tumour volume were compared with pathological response obtained at surgery following completion of NACT. Tumour blood flow at baseline (mean ± SD; 0.32 ± 0.17 ml/min/ml) reduced slightly after one cycle of NACT (0.28 ± 0.18 ml/min/ml). Following treatment 15 patients were identified as pathological responders and 20 as non-responders. There were no relationships found between tumour blood flow and pathological response. Conversely, tumour volume was found to be a good predictor of pathological response (smaller tumours did better) at both baseline (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve 0.80) and after one cycle of NACT (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve 0.81). The change in breast tumour blood flow following one cycle of EC90 did not predict pathological response. Tumour volume may be a better early marker of response with such agents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To compare the experience of four UK Centres in the use of intradermal microbubbles and contrast enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) to pre-operatively identify and biopsy sentinel lymph nodes (SLN) in patients with breast cancer. In all centres, breast cancer patients had a microbubble/CEUS SLN core biopsy prior to axillary surgery and patients in Centres 1 and 2 had a normal greyscale axillary ultrasound. Data were collected between 2010 and 2016; 1361 from Centre 1 (prospective, sequential), 376 from Centre 2 (retrospective, sequential), 121 from Centre 3 (retrospective, selected) and 48 from Centre 4 (prospective, selected). SLN were successfully core biopsied in 80% (Centre 1), 79.6% (Centre 2), 77.5% (Centre 3) and 88% (Centre 4). The sensitivities to identify all SLN metastases were 46.9% [95% confidence intervals (CI) (39.4–55.1)], 52.5% [95% CI (39.1–65.7)], 46.4% [95% CI (27.5–66.1)] and 45.5% [95% CI (16.7–76.6)], respectively. The specificities were 99.7% [95% CI (I98.9–100)], 98.1% [95% CI (94.5–99.6)], 100% [95% CI (93.2–100%)] and 96.3% [95% CI (81–99.9)], respectively.The negative predictive values were 87.0% [95% CI (84.3–89.3)], 84.5% [95% CI (78.4–89.5)], 86.9% [95% CI (82.4–90.3)] and 86.2% [95% CI (78.4–91.5)], respectively. At Centres 1 and 2, 12/730 (1.6%) and 7/181 (4%), respectively, of patients with a benign microbubble/CEUS SLN core biopsy had two or more lymph node (LN) macrometastases found at the end of primary surgical treatment. The identification and biopsy of SLN using CEUS is a reproducible technique. In the era of axillary conservation, microbubble/CEUS SLN core biopsy has the potential to succeed surgical staging of the axilla. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evidence-based clinical guidelines are essential to maximize patient benefit and to reduce clinical uncertainty and inconsistency in clinical practice. Gaps in the evidence base can be addressed by data acquired in routine practice. At present, there is no international consensus on management of women diagnosed with atypical lesions in breast screening programmes. Here, we describe how routine NHS breast screening data collected by the Sloane atypia project was used to inform a management pathway that maximizes early detection of cancer and minimizes over-investigation of lesions with uncertain malignant potential. A half-day consensus meeting with 11 clinical experts, 1 representative from Independent Cancer Patients' Voice, 6 representatives from NHS England (NHSE) including from Commissioning, and 2 researchers was held to facilitate discussions of findings from an analysis of the Sloane atypia project. Key considerations of the expert group in terms of the management of women with screen detected atypia were: (1) frequency and purpose of follow-up; (2) communication to patients; (3) generalizability of study results; and (4) workforce challenges. The group concurred that the new evidence does not support annual surveillance mammography for women with atypia, irrespective of type of lesion, or woman's age. Continued data collection is paramount to monitor and audit the change in recommendations., (© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Institute of Radiology.)