1Department of Surgery, College of Medicine, Hallym University, Seoul, Korea. 2Department of Pathology, College of Medicine, Hallym University, Seoul, Korea. 3Department of General Surgery, Central Gil Hospital, Inchon, Korea.
ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: Atypical ductal hyperplasia (ADH) is a lesion with significant malignant potential We evaluated the prevalence of breast carcinoma in surgical breast biopsies performed on palpable breast lesions diagnosed initially as ADH by fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC).
MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between January 1, 1996 and December 31, 1997, 942 patients who underwent FNAC at the Department of Surgery and Pathology, College of Medicine, Hallym University and Department of Surgery, Central Gil Hospital were analyzed. ADH was found in 46 (4.9%) of 942 patients, and surgica1 excision subsequently was performed in 39 of these cases. In these 39 cases, cytologic and histopathologic results from FNAC and surgical biopsies were reviewed and correlated.
RESULTS: Histopathologic study of the 39 surgically excised lesions diagnosed as ADH in their FNAC specimens showed breast cancer in 15 cases (38.5%), ADH in 11 cases (28.2%) and benign disease in 13 cases (33.3%).
CONCLUSION: In our patient populatian, 15 cases (38.5%) of 39 patients with ADH at FNAC had a breast cancer. Therefore, the FNAC finding of ADH may warrant a recommendation for an excisional biopsy.