Su Jin Kim Hsieh - Modern Breast Cancer Imaging

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Breast cancer has haunted the female universe for millennia. And this agony has been portrayed in many ways, both in history and in art. Sometimes in an accidental way as in some well-known paintings and sculptures, while at other times directly, as in hieroglyphic scripts that described it as an incurable disorder. Today, in the third millennium of the Christian era, our knowledge about this disease has completely changed. We already have the sequencing of the main genes related to breast cancer and specific targeted therapies, which totally altered its evolution. We know that early detection is still the best way to increase the chances of cure and the possibility of less aggressive surgical and adjuvant treatments. Currently there are imaging techniques capable of detecting increasingly smaller and biologically significant tumors. And this was only achieved thanks to the tireless work of doctors and scientists from different specialties, who joined together for a single objective: to reduce mortality from breast cancer and provide a better quality of life for women affected by it.

In the book Modern Breast Cancer Imaging, the editors, Su Jin Kim Hsieh and Elizabeth Morris, both with extensive expertise in breast radiology and international projection, brought a multidisciplinary approach to breast cancer, in the areas of pathology, oncology, radiotherapy, and surgery, in addition to an extensive update on diagnostic imaging applied to clinic. Divided into three large parts, the book initially brings the main advances in science from a clinical and pathological point of view. It covers from the molecular basis of breast cancer, risk factors, and genetic testing to advances in surgical and pathological treatment. In Part II, the imaging methods used in breast radiology, their indications and limitations, as well as their future perspectives are discussed, mainly how to transpose the information obtained to improve clinical outcomes. Part III presents the main clinical problems and how imaging methods can help: from screening to diagnosis, including treatment and follow-up of women diagnosed with breast cancer.

At last, despite breast cancer being one of the oldest and most studied diseases in science, we do have a lot to evolve. Mainly because fear and prejudice against this disease still exist, in the twenty-first century. And also, because we still witness many lives lost, despite being a potentially curable disease. We currently live in the era of personalized medicine, in which there is no single-treatment disease. There is indeed a unique woman, with a unique history and genetic profile, who must be accompanied individually. And this is the kind of treatment our women need and deserve. And for this, the collaboration among the various professionals who are part of a breast center is essential: radiologists, pathologists, breast surgeons, oncologists, and geneticists, among many other specialties. And it is this integration and updating of knowledge and technology that this book brings in a spectacular way.

The field of breast imaging has been evolving very fast lately, especially concerning breast cancer. Not only screening protocols have suffered some adjustments over the past years, but also new imaging methods, software and even new types of procedures have emerged. New concepts regarding molecular and genetic basis and therapeutic regimens have changed greatly.

The understanding of these new concepts become essential to give the patient the best possible care, since the confection of a relevant and useful breast imaging report from the radiologist, and also for the other professionals to understand what type of imaging exams to order in each scenario and how to interpret the results.

Keeping up to date demanded a great deal of effort, considering the vast amount of information in the literature, not only in the area of imaging, but also in other fields such as pathology, surgery and oncology.

The idea of this book was to compile up-to-date and established information about breast cancer in all these areas, in a multimodality approach. It is intended to be useful for daily practice not only for breast radiologists, but also for everyone who is in this field of medical practice.

This book has been written by very experienced and renowned professionals and would not be possible without their valuable contributions!

Special thanks to Dr Morris, who believed in this project from the beginning!