Ronald M. Pickett

Stereoscopic Digital Mammography: Improved Accuracy of Lesion Detection in Breast Cancer Screening

We report on a clinical trial comparing stereoscopic full-field digital mammography to standard (non-stereo) full-field digital mammography for detection of true breast lesions in a screening population. Each of 1458 enrolled patients received both a standard screening examination and a stereoscopic screening examination, which were read independently by different radiologists. Compared to standard digital mammography, stereo mammography significantly reduced false positive lesion detections by 46% (p< 0.0001), and significantly increased true positive lesion detections by 23% (p< 0.05).

Evaluation and Reduction of Error in Medical Judgments

Accuracy and consistency in many aspects of medical judgment have been shown to be disconcertingly low. This report focuses on error in medical judgments involving sensory evaluation of signs, symptoms and laborabory specimens. Four main factors that determine the extent of error in sensory evaluations are described, and five main approaches to error reduction are listed. A desirable general approach to error analysis is outlined and one simple expedient for reducing error is discussed.