Breast Biopsies Could Become A Thing Of The Past.(sound wave system for the diagnosis of breast tumors)

2001 AUG 23 - (NewsRx Network) -- A system that uses sound waves to prod suspect lumps deep within the body could save millions of women from the trauma of a breast biopsy, says an article in the August 1, 2001, issue of New Scientist.

The hope is that the technique, under development at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, will use ultrasound waves to distinguish malignant tumors from benign ones by measuring their elasticity.

Currently, suspect lumps are found using x-ray mammograms, ultrasound, or through physical examination, but these methods can oniy locate the growth. The only way to be sure whether it's malignant or not is to perform a biopsy-surgically removing part of the lump. "In the U.S., the percentage of biopsies that are performed on benign breast lesions is between 60% and 80%," explains Katherine Nightingale, head of the Duke team. Figures are similar in Europe. "There are no clinically available imaging methods that provide information about the mechanical properties of tissue," says Nightingale.

The Duke team uses a hand-held ultrasound device to locate and measure the stiffness of lumps by nudging them. "We are finding that different tissue types respond differently," Nightingale says. The team discovered that malign and benign lesions resist prodding to very different degrees and ...