Abstract

Halimat J. Akande*, Olalekan I. Oyinloye, and Bola B. Olafimihan

This study is to appraise the imaging findings of all patients that came into the breast imaging unit for screening and perhaps buttress the importance of a government policy guideline on screening and treatment for breast cancer in Nigeria. This prospective study was carried out among all consecutive patients that came for screening in the breast imaging unit of the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (U.I.T.H), Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria, between April, 2009 and January, 2011. Aloka prosound SSD-350+ ultrasound machine equipped with linear and curvilinear 7.5- 10 MHz transducers was used for breast scan in longitudinal, transverse, radial and anti-radial planes. Mammograms were acquired with a GE Senographe DMR machine using two standard views (cranio-caudal and mediolateral oblique) and additional views where necessary. The biodata were retrieved from the request forms or directly from the patients and the imaging findings and prospective breast imaging reporting and data system (BIRADS) category assigned to each case were documented. These were analysed for this study. One hundred and two women presented for screening mammogram and eight for screening breast ultrasound scan. The age range was 31 to 75 years (49.7years +/- 7.65) and the modal age was 50 years (8.2%). With the modalities combined, majority of the patients (46.36%) had BIRADS 2, with 36.36, 15.45 and 0.9% having BIRADS 1, 3 and 0 respectively. A patient (0.9%) had BIRADS 5 assessment category. This study was able to detect positive and other negative lesions. The positive case was seen in a woman that presented voluntarily for screening. Mammography is becoming available in this part of the world and increased public awareness is necessary to optimise its use. However, the high cost of screening and treatment of cancer might be a limiting factor, thus a well planned government policy on screening and treatment of breast cancer will go a long way in reducing the morbidity and mortality from this dreaded disease.