Conventional CT versus Dedicated CT Angiography in DIEP Flap Planning: A Feasibility Study.

The deep inferior epigastric perforator (DIEP) flap is used with increasing frequency in post-mastectomy breast reconstruction. Preoperative mapping with CT angiography (CTa) is crucial in reducing surgical complications and optimizing surgical techniques. Our study's goal was to investigate the accuracy of conventional CT (cCT), performed during disease staging, compared to CTa in preoperative DIEP flap planning.

Correct determination of the enhancement curve is critical to ensure accurate diagnosis using the Kaiser score as a clinical decision rule for breast MRI.

Objectives: the Kaiser score is increasingly recognized as a valuable tool to improve breast MRI interpretation. Contrast enhancement kinetics are the second most important diagnostic criterion, thus defining the curve type plays a crucial role in Kaiser score assessment. We investigate whether the timepoint used to determine the initial enhancement (earlyor peak) for the signal-intensity time curve analysis affects the diagnostic performance of the Kaiser score.

Image-Guided Localization Techniques for Surgical Excision of Non-Palpable Breast Lesions: An Overview of Current Literature and Our Experience with Preoperative Skin Tattoo.

Breast conserving surgery has become the standard of care and is more commonly performed than mastectomy for early stage breast cancer, with recent studies showing equivalent survival and lower morbidity. Accurate preoperative lesion localization is mandatory to obtain adequate oncological and cosmetic results. Image guidance assures the precision requested for this purpose.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging prediction of large volume displacement oncoplastic surgery versus mastectomy in the treatment of breast cancer.

Purpose: To analyse the influence of tumor volume/breast volume ratio (TV/BV ratio) measured on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and other factors on surgeons' choice between large volume displacement oncoplastic surgery (LVOS) versus mastectomy (M) in patients with large sized tumors. Secondly, we investigate the predictive value of TV/BV ratio and other possible predictors for cosmetic results.

Materials And Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 80 MRI examinations performed on 77 breast cancer patients who underwent M (58 breasts, 72.

External Validation of a Risk Stratification Score for B3 Breast Lesions Detected at Ultrasound Core Needle Biopsy.

Objective: The aim of this study was to externally validate the feasibility and robustness of a risk-stratification score for B3 lesions based on clinical, pathological, and radiological data for improved clinical decision making.

Methods: 129 consecutive histologically confirmed B3 lesions diagnosed at ultrasound-guided biopsy at our institution were included in this retrospective study. Patient- and lesion-related variables were independently assessed by two blinded breast radiologists (R1, R2), by assigning each feature a score from 0 to 2 (maximum sum-score of 5).

Usefulness of automated breast volume scanner (ABVS) for monitoring tumor response to neoadjuvant treatment in breast cancer patients: preliminary results.

Objective: We investigated the accuracy of Automated Breast Volume Scanner (ABVS) compared to handheld ultrasound (HHUS) for monitoring tumor response to neoadjuvant treatment (NAT) in breast cancer (BC).

Patients And Methods: All the patients submitted to biopsy in our Institution, from January 2017 to May 2017, proven invasive BC and eligible for NAT, were enrolled in this prospective study. The participants underwent ABVS, HHUS, dynamic contrast-enhanced Magnetic Resonance Imaging (DCE-MRI) and mammography at the beginning of NAT and ABVS, HHUS and DCE-MRI at the halfway point of therapy and before the surgery.

Morphological and Semiquantitative Kinetic Analysis on Dynamic Contrast Enhanced MRI in Triple Negative Breast Cancer Patients.

Rationale And Objectives: The aim of this study was to retrospectly investigate the association between different breast cancer (BC) immunohistochemical subtypes and morphological and semiquantitative kinetic analysis on breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) performed before surgery treatment. Specifically we aimed to assess MRI features of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) compared to the other BC subtypes (nTNBC).

Materials And Methods: Patients undergone to breast MRI and then diagnosed with BC by core-needle biopsy were included.

Effects of selected pectinolytic bacterial strains on water-retting of hemp and fibre properties.

Aims: To study the effect of selected bacterial strains on hemp water-retting and properties of retted fibre.

Methods And Results: The trials were performed in laboratory tanks. The traditional water-retting process, without inoculum addition, was compared to a process modified by inoculating water tanks with two selected pectinolytic bacteria: the anaerobic strain Clostridium sp.