Understanding the role of DITI* in breast screening.

(*Digital Infrared Thermal Imaging)

The benefits of DITI do vary between age and risk groups.

With the pre mammogram age group (under 50) the benefits of screening to detect any findings

or changes that justify additional testing or closer monitoring are simple. With any positive DITI

findings in this younger age group, any mammogram and ultrasound sensitivity and specificity will

be increased with the objective DITI findings targeting a dysfunction and location and providing

decision making information in women that would not have otherwise been tested.

It takes years for most cancers to develop to the stage that they can be detected with

mammogram or ultrasound (dense enough for location and biopsy) so DITI is ideally placed as a

screening tool to identify changes over time in the 'early' development stages, before there is

more advanced pathology that can be detected with other tests.

The major benefit in this group is in detecting early changes that precede malignant pathology

that will become diagnosable at some stage.

Early detection is aimed at prevention and if early changes are detected then we have an

opportunity to intervene and change the outcome.

The earlier an abnormality is detected the better the treatment options will be, resulting in a better

outcome.

Prevention may include treatment of inflammation, fibrocystic disease, lymph congestion,

estrogen dominance and more specific conditions like angiogenesis.

DITI does not provide any of the same findings or information that mammogram or ultrasound

provides, it is a different type of test. DITI shows information relating to vascular activity,

inflammation, lymphatic activity, hormonal dysfunction and other 'functional' abnormalities.

There are no contraindications for DITI, it is totally non-invasive, no radiation of any type, no

contact with the body so it can ‘do no harm’.

Mammogram and ultrasound shows 'structure', tissue densities can be evaluated, lumps can be

measured, calcifications located and opinions given regarding pathology before biopsy ..... none

of which DITI can provide.

There is no comparison or competition between mammogram and DITI. They are two different

tests providing different results !

The results are reported by medical doctors who are certified thermologists and experienced in

reading thermograms, the reading doctor takes into consideration all history and symptoms and

the results of other tests.

In patients of mammographic age (generally over 50), post menopause or when the density of

breast tissue has reduced sufficiently to make mammography more affective, DITI not only

provides the benefit of early detection of functional change but can also increase the detection

rates of other tests by contributing additional information about functional (physiological)

abnormality and also the location of suspicious (positive) thermal findings that may be outside the

range of other tests due to location, size of breast, implant, or other limiting factors .

DITI as a screening test in all age groups is designed to establish a baseline (the patients normal

thermal fingerprint) for ongoing comparative analysis (normally annual) to detect any

physiological change that justifies additional testing (which could be physician exam,

mammogram, ultrasound, MRI, blood work, hormone testing or a number of other interventions).

The changes that DITI can detect include, inflammatory pathology (inflammatory carcinoma /

inflammatory breast disease) Infection, Lymph dysfunction (lymph congestion, lymph node

pathology) Vascular changes (development of new and abnormal blood vessels known as

'angiogenesis') and also any suspicious activity outside the range or scope of other tests (outside

the boarder of the breast, in the sternum or axilla) so again, there is no comparison or competition

between different tests.

DITI cannot detect specific pathology like a biopsy, it cannot detect tumors or micro-calcifications.

DITI cannot ‘see’ structure.

DITI does have the potential to create anxiety for a patient (as does mammogram) with equivocal

results or results that cannot be confirmed or positively diagnosed but both tests can minimize

unnecessary anxiety with better informed consent, education and realistic expectation for the test.

The best possible plan is to use every appropriate test adjunctively to get the highest detection

rates without generating additional or unnecessary invasive testing.

It would be unfortunate for a patient to forgo a necessary mammogram that was justified, and any

decision should be made with consultation between the patient and her doctors based on

individual history, symptoms and test results.