[Mammographic control after quadrantectomy and radiation therapy].

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Radiology
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Combined surgery and radiation therapy are standard breast cancer treatments.
• Mammography is vital for post-treatment surveillance to detect early recurrences.
• Evaluating changes in treated breasts requires understanding post-irradiation effects.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the efficacy of mammography in detecting breast cancer recurrence after combined treatment.
• To analyze mammographic findings in patients treated with local excision, axillary dissection, and irradiation.
• To correlate mammographic findings with histological changes and identify diagnostic challenges.

Main Methods:

• Follow-up of 43 breast cancer patients treated with local excision, axillary dissection, and irradiation.
• Serial mammography performed at 6, 12, and 24 months post-treatment.
• Correlation of radiological findings with histopathological results from excisional biopsies.

Main Results:

• 88.3% of patients showed abnormal mammographic patterns post-treatment.
• Common findings included skin thickening (83.7%), increased parenchymal density (76.7%), and architectural distortion (39.5%).
• Mammography identified suspicious findings in 7 patients, with recurrence confirmed in 4 (57.1%) via biopsy; however, 3 cases showed benign changes mimicking malignancy.

Conclusions:

• Mammography is a valuable tool for breast cancer recurrence detection post-treatment.
• Interpreting post-irradiation changes on mammograms can be difficult, leading to potential misdiagnosis.
• A structured clinical and mammographic follow-up schedule is recommended, aligning with existing literature.