Comparison between <sup>99m</sup>Tc-Methoxyisobutyl Isonitrile and <sup>99m</sup>Tc-Methylenediphosphonate Scintimammography for Detection ofBreast Carcino ma
Abstract
<i>Objective:</i> The goal of the study was to assess the values of scintimammography with <sup>99m</sup>Tc-methoxyisobutyl isonitrile (<sup>99m</sup>Tc-MIBI) and <sup>99m</sup>Tc-methylenediphosphonate (<sup>99m</sup>Tc-MDP) in detecting breast cancer. <i>Methods:</i> A total of 35 women with clinical findings of suspicious breast lesions were studied with both <sup>99m</sup>Tc-MIBI and <sup>99m</sup>Tc-MDP scintimammography. All patients underwent surgery within 1 week, and the results of the histopathological diagnosis were obtained. <i>Results:</i> Eighteen of 35 abnormalities of the breast were pathologically confirmed as primary breast cancer and 17 as benign lesions. In this group of patients, the sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of <sup>99m</sup>Tc-MIBI scintimammography were 77.8, 88.2 and 82.9%, respectively, while those of <sup>99m</sup>Tc-MDP scintimammography were 72.2, 88.2 and 80.8%, respectively. There was no significant difference between the results of <sup>99m</sup>Tc-MIBI and <sup>99m</sup>Tc-MDP scintimammography. <i>Conclusion:</i> This study demonstrated a high diagnostic accuracy of both <sup>99m</sup>Tc-MIBI and <sup>99m</sup>Tc-MDP scintimammography in detecting breast cancer. Both radiopharmaceuticals can be used as an adjunct method for the noninvasive assessment of breast cancer prior to surgery. However, <sup>99m</sup>Tc-MDP is less expensive and more readily available than <sup>99m</sup>Tc-MIBI.