[Value of palpation findings in breast examination]

During a period of 3.5 years 13,214 patients were examined in a specialised breast clinic; 87% of the women had been referred by gynaecologists. 73% of the 160 carcinomas discovered 65% of the 143 fibroadenomas and 32% of the 982 cysts were palpable. Among 2,355 patients with a positive palpation, a carcinoma was found only in 5% of cases, whilst a carcinoma was found in 0.4% of the 10,819 patients with negative palpation. Therefore the use of apparatus in breast diagnosis is highly recommended both to avoid unnecessary surgery and to discover small cancers.