These technologic innovations assist intelligence officers in finding targets camouflaged behind trees via satellite, said Health and Human Services Secretary Donna E. Shalala. Now clinical trials will determine the safety and effectiveness of the same intelligence technologies to assist radiologists with finding small cancers camouflaged behind breast tissue. Over the last two years, the Office on Women's Health in the U.S. Public Health Service has been exploring how national investments in defense, space and intelligence technologies can be used to improve breast cancer detection techniques. Research results from this initiative indicated there was a strong potential for adapting the high-tech imaging capabilities of the CIA and the Department of Defense, estimated to be some 10 years ahead of medical imaging, to improve the early detection and diagnosis of breast cancer. Clinical trials are the crucial next step to test how effectively these new imaging procedures will work on women, with the intent of having the new technologies available to consumers as soon as possible.
Breast cancer is one of the most feared diseases among women.
One in eight women will be diagnosed with the deadly disease during her lifetime. It is estimated that in 1996 more than 44,000 women will die from breast cancer. Currently, mammography is the best method for detecting breast cancer and can decrease death rates by 30 percent. In addition, three out of four lesions detected by this technology are benign, leading to unnecessary and costly procedures, including biopsies. The clinical trials mark a turning point in the progress of transferring imaging technologies from other fields to improve breast cancer detection.