New Breast Cancer Screening Could Bring Better Diagnoses and Treatment to Uganda

Radiologists may be a bit closer to implementing a program in an undeserved region of Uganda for diagnosing and treating women with palpable breast masses.

The program uses a diagnostic algorithm along with targeted community outreach, according to medical student Chris Duncan who is working with the organization Imaging the World, a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing diagnostic imaging to undeserved areas around the world. It has multiple obstetrical imaging programs currently operating in Uganda and plans to expand both the obstetric imaging and breast imaging programs in the area.

"We just returned from a trip to Kamuli, Uganda where we laid the groundwork for implementation of the diagnostic algorithm," said Duncan, a fourth year medical student at University of Vermont. "Our team met with local stakeholders, determined available treatments and identified potential barriers. The meetings helped ensure that we can create appropriate local resources prior to our program roll-out this summer."

According to a press release, the diagnostic algorithm is designed to be simpler and more effective than the current course of breast cancer diagnosis and treatment for women in Uganda, a region where most breast cancer patients are diagnosed with breast cancer at later stages, according to Duncan.

The algorithm focuses on breast ultrasound as an initial diagnostic tool for evaluating palpable breast masses, and are completed by trained personnel. The ultrasound images are then compressed and uploaded to a server where they are sent to a cellular network at another location for an imaging expert to examine.

"We have trained local surgeons to perform both fine-needle and core biopsies using ultrasound guidance," Duncan said. If the biopsy is positive for cancer, the patient is referred to the major tertiary referral hospital in the capital city for treatment. "

The Uganda breast imaging program is being described in an electronic exhibit featured at the ARRS Annual Meeting in Washington, DC.