A study comparing the effectiveness of 3D versus 2D mammography is enrolling participants in Greater Cincinnati.The nationwide study funded by the National Cancer Institute seeks to follow 165,000 women ages 45 to 74 over several years.
Lawrence Sobel, M.D., is director of breast imaging for UC Health and is leading the study locally.
"This is the first extremely large scale study," he says. "It's going to be in approximately 130 institutions with UC being the only institution in the Tri-State area and involve over 150,000 women... None of the other studies have involved that many women. It's very difficult to get that many in a single institution study, which most of the other [studies] were."
Sobel expects to follow participants for eight years, or at least through 2025, including breast cancer status, treatment and outcomes. He adds the study will collect data and tissue samples for future breast cancer research.
"It is pretty well known that the results will show that 3D is superior to 2D," Sobel says. "but this will help determine how much better; in what circumstances might it be used more efficiently; and in what ways it will correlate with cancer risk or how it can be used with certain risk factors."
The study doesn't include new or experimental treatments. Participants will be selected from UC Health's client base. Women will be contacted before their scheduled screening to discuss possible enrollment, a release states.
