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Breast Imaging Companion, 2nd ed.

University of California, Irvine Medical Center Orange, CA 92868-3298

By Gilda Cardeñosa. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 512 pp., 2001. $59

If you would like to review books for AJR, please send a cover letter stating your interest with a current curriculum vitae to Assistant Editor for Book Reviews, AJR, 101 S. Stratford Rd., Ste. 303, Winston-Salem, NC 27104.

In the preface to Breast Imaging Companion, Gilda Cardeñosa notes that her book is "targeted to radiology residents," but hopes it will offer "something... for anyone involved in breast imaging." She has succeeded in achieving both goals.

A strength of Cardeñosa's new edition is the imaging correlation with both clinical and histopathologic findings. This approach is organized on the basis of anatomic areas of involvement (i.e., findings involving the skin—nipple—areolar complex, major subareolar ducts, lobules, and stroma). The book offers "pearls" about the clinical diagnosis of skin lesions that breast imaging patients may present with, such as Mondor's disease (thrombophlebitis of a superficial breast vein, usually the thoracoepigastric vein).

Breast Imaging Companion presents specific information on how to perform screening and diagnostic mammography, interventional procedures, and sonography. The descriptions are succinct and generously illustrated with high-quality images and illustrations.

Quality control and technical considerations are covered in depth. The second edition has a new chapter on regulatory issues and more information on documentation of findings. Emerging technologies are no longer covered in a separate chapter because, according to Cardeñosa, "...our understanding of their appropriate applications remains investigational...."

The book offers an overview and review of breast imaging in a condensed format. It is a quick reference guide for information about imaging and clinicohistopathologic findings in benign and malignant disease; quality control in technique and interpretation (including the medical audit and how to apply American College of Radiology assessment codes); and how to perform imaging-guided breast procedures. The condensed format works extremely well for radiology residents.

Limitations of the book include its sometimes too-terse text and coverage of material that appears forced into chapters or sections. For example, a discussion of "probably benign" and "malignant" assessments is included in the chapter on Diagnostic Mammography and Problem Solving, whereas the remainder of the material deals with technique, special views, and triangulation of lesions. I believe that a separate chapter on interpretation and assessments might be preferable. The current edition's lack of information about emerging technologies is also a limitation. Rather than omitting this section from the second edition, it would have been preferable to expand and update information about MR imaging, digital mammography, computer-aided diagnosis, scintigraphy, and positron emission tomography. Residents, as well as practicing radiologists, need to know about the latest advances in breast imaging.

I recommend Breast Imaging Companion as an extremely useful basic text for residents and as a quick reference for more experienced radiologists.

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This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Cyrlak, D. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Cyrlak, D. Social Bookmarking                      What's this?