Benign breast diseases: epidemiology, evaluation, and management

Area of Science:

• Breast pathology
• Diagnostic imaging
• Surgical oncology

Background:

• Benign breast diseases represent a wide range of conditions.
• Diagnosis frequently arises from symptomatic presentation (e.g., breast mass, pain) or imaging abnormalities.
• Percutaneous biopsy is a common diagnostic tool for breast abnormalities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To outline diagnostic considerations for benign breast diseases.
• To define indications for excisional biopsy in breast lesion management.

Main Methods:

• Review of common diagnostic pathways for benign breast conditions.
• Analysis of criteria for proceeding from percutaneous biopsy to excisional biopsy.

Main Results:

• Most benign breast disease diagnoses originate from patient symptoms or imaging findings.
• Discordance between mammographic and pathologic results necessitates further investigation.
• High-risk lesions identified on biopsy warrant excisional biopsy due to potential malignancy association.

Conclusions:

• Excisional biopsy is crucial for managing breast lesions with discordant imaging-pathology findings.
• Excisional biopsy is indicated for high-risk lesions to rule out or manage malignancy.