[The use of automatic devices for ultrasonography-guided histologic biopsy of breast lesions]

The authors report their experience with the use of biopsy guns for the histologic sampling of breast lesions. Cytologic sampling by means of FNAB has been preferred so far because it was thought to be simpler, less risky and more reliable. Nevertheless, cytologic sampling exhibits several drawbacks--e.g., the need of repeated punctures to get sufficient cell material, frequent problems in diagnosing benign lesions and the decisive influence of the operator's skills. The use of biopsy guns for histologic sampling solves the above problems, because the value of the sample is not affected by the operator's skills; moreover, fewer punctures are needed and their value does not depend on lesion nature. Our series of cases includes 65 patients who underwent histologic sampling for suspected lesions over 10 months. A hundred and seventy-two samples were collected and 77 lesions were diagnosed, 47 of them malignant and 30 benign (fibroadenomas, fibrocystic changes, epitheliosis). Sensitivity, specificity and diagnostic accuracy of the method were 93.6%, 100% and 96.1%, respectively, with 6.4% false negative due to 3 cases where the lesion was not centred due to misguidance.