Scintimammography

Scintimammography, also known as nuclear medicine breast imaging, breast specific gamma imaging or molecular breast imaging, is a type of breast imaging test that is used to detect cancer cells in the breasts of some women who have had abnormal mammograms, or for those who have dense breast tissue, post-operative scar tissue or breast implants, but is not used for screening or in place of a mammogram. Rather, it is used when the detection of breast abnormalities is not possible or not reliable on the basis of mammography and ultrasound. In the scintimammography procedure, a woman receives an injection of a small amount of a radioactive substance called technetium 99 sestamibi, which is taken up by cancer cells, and a gamma camera is used to take pictures of the breasts.