ARTICLE Variability of Interpretive Accuracy Among Diagnostic Mammography Facilities

Women undergoing diagnostic mammography for a clinical breast symptom are at a 10-fold higher risk for breast cancer compared with asymptomatic women who are screened for cancer ( 1). Facilities performing screening mammography vary in the accu-racy of their interpretation, and those facilities with more frequent audit feedback and a breast specialist on staff may provide more accurate screening tests ( 2). However, little is known about the effect of facility characteristics on the accuracy of diagnostic mammography. Previous studies ( 3 – 9) described patient and radiologist charac-teristics associated with the accuracy of diagnostic mammography, such as a patient ’ s breast density and radiologist’s time spent in breast imaging. At the mammography facility level, one study in Denmark ( 6) reported greater accuracy at facilities that have a