Electronics giant Hitachi has developed a painless screening technology for breast cancer.

The new method uses ultrasound to detect tumors with greater accuracy than mammography screening. Mammography is currently the most common testing method. However, it requires breasts to be flattened and can cause significant pain. It also uses X-rays, delivering low dose radiation. With Hitachi’s system, examinees simply lie face down on a table and place their breasts in a container of water. It can detect early stage cancer using 360 degree ultrasound beams without pain or radiation.

Breast cancer has become one of the leading causes of female mortality in many countries. Early detection is crucial. Hitachi intends to develop a practical application for the technology by 2020 following clinical trials.

大手電機メーカーの日立が、無痛の乳がん検診技術を開発しました。

この新たな検査方法は、超音波を使い、マンモグラフィーよりも高い精度で腫瘍を検出します。マンモグラフィーは現在、最も一般的な検査方法ですが、検査のために、乳房を平らに圧迫する必要があり、激しい痛みを伴うことがあります。またマンモグラフィーは、X線を使うので、少量の被爆を伴います。日立の検査方法では、受診者は、診察台にうつ伏せになり、水を張った容器の中に乳房を入れるだけです。360度の方向から照射される超音波を使って、痛みや被爆を伴うことなく、初期のがんを発見することが可能になります。

乳がんは、多くの国で、女性の主な死亡原因の1つとなっており、早期発見が重要です。日立は、臨床試験の後、2020年までにこの新しい乳がん検査技術の実用化を目指しています。

Listening Quiz

1. Complete the sentence: While mammography is the most common screening method, it ( ).

• arequires patients to float in a container of water
• bsqueezes breasts painfully and uses radiation
• cis less accurate than other screening methods

2. Which of the following could best replace “leading” in paragraph three?

• apopular
• bmain
• cadvanced

3. According to the article, which of the following is true about Hitachi’s system?

• aHitachi is still developing the technology and currently has no plans to release it.
• bOne drawback of Hitachi’s system is that patients need to lie face down in water.
• cHitachi’s ultrasound method offers superior accuracy to conventional mammography.

4. With Hitachi’s system, patients lie on a table that is rotated 360 degrees so they can be scanned with X-rays.

• aTRUE
• bFALSE
• cN/A (not applicable)