The number of people who visit outpatient departments for a self-examination, health examination or an examination about breast disease has recently been increasing. Among these peoples, some of them have abnormal finding for their breasts, and several diagnostic methods are presently being used for the accurate diagnosis of these patients. In this study, we wished to increase the diagnosis rate of breast disease and we wanted to create the opportunity for obtaining accurate diagnosis by using mammography, ultrasonography and fine needle aspiration biopsy.

From January 2000 to December 2002, 127 patients among all the patients who visited department of surgery, were clinically assessed with using ultrasonography, mammography, fine needle aspiration biopsy and postoperative histopathology after they had first undergone excisional biopsy. We had calculated the sensitivity, specificity, the positive predictive value, the negative predictive value and the diagnostic accuracy of each diagnostic method. We assigned points for the diagnostic result and we then calculated the sensitivity and specificity via these points.

The sensitivity of ultrasonography, mammography and fine needle aspiration biopsy was 94.9%, 82.1% and 94.9%, respectively, and the specificity was 62.5%, 90.9% and 93.2%, respectively. The positive predictive value was 52.9%, 80% and 86.0%, and the negative predictive value was 96.5%, 92% and 97.6%, and the diagnostic accuracy was 72.4%, 88.2% and 93.7%, respectively. We divided the results by the benign and malignant nature of the findings with using points, and on this triple test, the sensitivity was 97.4%, the specificity was 97.7%, the positive predictive value was 95%, the negative predictive value was 98.9% and the diagnostic accuracy was 97.6%.

When diagnosing breast disease, the modified triple test showed that it reduce the rate of performing unnecessary surgical operations. Good skilled technique when performing fine needle aspiration biopsy can help to future reduce this rate even more.