Screening mammography: a surgeon's strategy for dealing with abnormal mammographic findings

Screening mammography is a valuable tool in the detection of breast cancer at an early stage. Large numbers of patients are being referred to surgeons for biopsies on the basis of mammographic abnormalities alone. As mammograms are complex studies and the findings often subtle, variation in terms of interpretation and recommendations for biopsy can leave the surgeon in a difficult position. We have reported a systematic method for evaluating patients and mammograms. Eighty-eight patients were referred to a single surgeon solely for an abnormal mammographic finding. Physical examination was repeated and the mammogram reviewed with a single consulting radiologist using specific criteria to define a mammographic abnormality. Through this evaluation, biopsy was avoided in 42 of 88 patients, with follow-up mammograms and physical examinations finding no suspicion of malignancy. By becoming educated in regard to mammographic abnormalities, establishing specific criteria with a consistent radiologist, and following patients carefully who are not biopsied, the surgeon can deal effectively with screening mammography.