Prospective evaluation of the triple test for the diagnosis of palpabreastmass
Keywords:
breast neoplasm, mammography, fine-needle aspiration biopsy, clinical examinationAbstract
Objective
To evaluate the validity of the triple test (clinical examination, mammography and fine needle aspiration) in the diagnosis of palpable breast nodules.
Methods
This was a prospective validation study of diagnostic tests, carried out at the Center for Comprehensive Attention to Women's Health at the State University of Campinas. The study included 102 women over the age of 30 referred to a tertiary hospital center with a palpable breast lump. Estimates of sensitivity, specificity and predictive values of the triple test were calculated using histological examination of lesions as the gold standard.
Results
The triple test presented a sensitivity of 90%, specificity and positive predictive value of 100%, and a negative predictive value of 82%. An evaluation of the combinations of two tests was also carried out, and clinical examination with fine needle aspiration showed the best performance (sensitivity of 100% and specificity of 87%).
Conclusion
The use of the triple test, especially when the results of the three isolated tests are in agreement, could reduce the number of surgeries in the case of benign diseases and the number of complementary diagnostic procedures in the case of malignant diseases.
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