To investigate the clinical value of breast thermal tomography combined with high frequency ultrasound imaging in the diagnosis of small breast cancer.

This retrospective study analyzed 163 breast tumors (≤2 cm) which were examined by high frequency ultrasound imaging during May to December, 2013 and the thermal tomography combined with ultrasound were used for the diagnosis. According to the pathology results, the sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of thermal tomography, high frequency ultrasound and the combined method were calculated. The odds ratio of the three methods were claculated by Chi-square test in the diagnosis of T₁breast cancer and the difference of sensitivity, specificity and accuracy were compared. The receiver operating characteristic curve was drawn.

The odds ratio of high frequency ultrasound, thermal tomography and the combined method in the diagnosis of T₁breast cancer were 11.070, 9.090 and 13.345, and there was statistical significance (P<0.05) for each of them. The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of ultrasound in the diagnosis of T₁breast cancer were 96.77%, 62.12% and 68.71%. The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of thermal tomography in the diagnosis of T₁breast cancer were 64.52%, 83.33% and 79.75%. The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of combined method were 64.52%, 89.39% and 84.66%. The area under curve (AUC) of thermal tomography, high frequency ultrasound and the combined method were 0.739, 0.762 and 0.753.

Specificity and accuracy of thermal tomography combined with high-frequency ultrasound has been greatly improved in the diagnosis of T₁breast cancer.