Relationship between Volpara Density Grade and Compressed Breast Thickness in Japanese Patients with Breast Cancer

Abstract

Background: High breast density found using mammographs (MGs) reduces positivity rates and is considered a risk factor for breast cancer. Research on the relationship between Volpara density grade (VDG) and compressed breast thickness (CBT) in the Japanese population is still lacking. Moreover, little attention has been paid to pseudo-dense breasts with CBT < 30 mm among high-density breasts. We investigated VDG, CBT, and apparent high breast density in patients with breast cancer. Methods: Women who underwent MG and breast cancer surgery at our institution were included. VDG and CBT were measured. VDG was divided into a non-dense group (NDG) and a dense group (DG). Results: This study included 419 patients. VDG was negatively correlated with CBT. The DG included younger patients with lower body mass index (BMI) and thinner CBT. In the DG, patients with CBT < 30 mm had lower BMI and higher VDG; however, no significant difference was noted in the positivity rate of the two groups. Conclusions: Younger women tend to have higher breast density, resulting in thinner CBT, which may pose challenges in detecting breast cancer on MGs. However, there was no significant difference in the breast cancer detection rate between CBT < 30 mm and CBT ≥ 30 mm.

Keywords

• breast density
• dense breast
• Volpara
• compressed breast thickness
• pseudo-dense breast