Radial scars of the breast: sonographic findings

The purpose of this study was to identify the sonographic features of radial scars of the breast and to determine whether sonography has a role in imaging of radial scars suspected on mammography. Over a period of 4 years and 6 months, patients with a pathologic diagnosis of a radial scar and who had undergone mammographic and sonographic evaluation before biopsy were identified. During the period studied, there were 17 patients with a histopathologic diagnosis of a radial scar who had undergone sonographic and mammographic evaluation before biopsy. A radial scar was sonographically visible in eight of the 17 patients. In three of these patients, the lesion was more apparent on the sonogram than on the mammogram, and in one patient the radial scar was identified only on sonographic evaluation. It was concluded that radial scars of the breast may be sonographically visible; hence, additional sonographic evaluation may be helpful in those patients in whom mammographic findings are subtle or apparent on only one mammographic view to aid in the localization of the lesion before biopsy.