Correlation Between Mammographic Breast Density, Breast Tissue Type in Ultrasonography, Fibroglandular Tissue, and Background Parenchymal Enhancement in Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Abstract

Objective: Breast cancer is the most common malignancy in the female population, and imaging studies play a critical role for its early detection. Mammographic breast density (MBD) is one of the markers used to predict the risk stratification of breast cancer in patients. We aimed to assess the correlations among MBD, ultrasound breast composition (USBC), fibroglandular tissue (FGT), and the amount of background parenchymal enhancement (BPE) in magnetic resonance imaging, after considering the subjects’ menopausal status. Methods: In this retrospective cross-sectional study, the medical records’ archives in a tertiary referral hospital were reviewed. Data including age, menopausal status, their mammograms, and ultrasound assessments were extracted from their records. All of their imaging studies were reviewed, and MBD, USBC, FGT, and BPE were determined, recorded, and entered into SPSS software for analysis. Results: A total of 121 women (mean age = 42.7 ± 11.0 years) were included, of which 35 out of 115 (30.4%) had reached menopause. Using the Jonckheere-Terpstra test for evaluating the trends among above mentioned 4 radiologic characteristics in the total sample population, a significant positive relation was found between each of these paired variables: (1) USBC-MBD ( P = .006), (2) FGT-MBD ( P = .001), (3) USBC-BPE ( P = .046), (4) USBC-FGT ( P = .036), and (5) BPE-FGT ( P < .001). These trends were not found to be significant among premenopausal subjects. Conclusions: Considering the trends between different measures of breast density in the 3 radiologic modalities, these factors can be used interchangeably in certain settings.