Don’t Do This – Sticker Crazy

IMAGING FINDINGS: ​

​Bilateral mediolateral oblique (MLO) views demonstrate breasts composed of scattered fibroglandular elements with no apparent abnormality.  Multiple mole markers are placed on the breasts for the exam, which is an unnecessary step.  

WHY IT MATTERS:

1. Mole markers, scar markers or other stickers can be placed on the breast to indicate the presence of skin lesions, sites of prior surgery or other superficial abnormalities. With the adoption of tomosynthesis, these markers are usually not very helpful as skin lesions can clearly be identified on the first tomo slices.
2. In fact, placing several unnecessary skin markers and stickers can be distracting and can even cause artifact on the tomo cine images. Avoid placing these unnecessary markers in times when they don’t add anything to the case.
   
   

FURTHER READING:
Digital Breast Tomosynthesis: Lessons Learned from Early Clinical Implementation (RadioGraphics 2014)