Preoperative radiographically guided wire marking of nonpalpable breast lesions

In 37 women with possibly malignant lesions detected at radiography of the breast, 42 excisional biopsies were performed using preoperative guide wire marking at radiography. The wire transfixed or missed the lesion by less than one cm in 95 per cent of the cases, and in all but three cases a precise localization was obtained with only one wire. Full removal of the lesion was obtained at the first excision in 40 procedures and a second excision was necessary in only two patients. Minor wound complications occurred in two patients. The malignancy rate was 13.5 per cent and metastatic lymph node involvement was not observed in any of the patients. The localization method described is easy to perform and highly recommendable.