Two dosimetric quantities [mean glandular dose (MGD) and entrance surface air kerma (ESAK)] and the diagnostic performance of phase-contrast mammography with synchrotron radiation (MSR) are compared to conventional digital mammography (DM). Seventy-one patients (age range, 41 to 82 years) underwent MSR after a DM examination if questionable or suspicious breast abnormalities were not clarified by ultrasonography. The MGD and the ESAK delivered in both examinations were evaluated and compared. Two on-site radiologists rated the images in consensus according to the Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System assessment categories, which were then correlated with the final diagnoses by means of statistical generalized linear models (GLMs). Receiver operating characteristic curves were also used to assess the diagnostic performance by comparing the area under the curve (AUC). An important MGD and ESAK reduction was observed in MSR due to the monoenergetic beam. In particular, an average 43% reduction was observed for the MGD and a reduction of more than 50% for the ESAK. GLM showed higher diagnostic accuracy, especially in terms of specificity, for MSR, confirmed by AUC analysis ([Formula: see text]). The study design implied that the population was characterized by a high prevalence of disease and that the radiologists, who read the DM images before referring the patient to MSR, could have been influenced in their assessments. Within these limitations, the use of synchrotron radiation with the phase-contrast technique applied to mammography showed an important dose reduction and a higher diagnostic accuracy compared with DM. These results could further encourage research on the translation of x-ray phase-contrast imaging into the clinics.

Keywords: breast cancer; diagnostic performance; mammography; mean glandular dose; synchrotron radiation; x-ray phase-contrast imaging.