Incidental Lesions Detected in Reduction Mammoplasty Specimens

The incidence of breast lesions detected in reduction mammoplasty specimens varies with patients’ previous history of breast cancer, patients’ age, and the number of submitted pathological sections. The incidence of proliferative lesions with atypia including invasive carcinoma varies in different studies between 0.2% and 1.1%. In a retrospective review, 392 patients who underwent reduction mammoplasty mainly for symptomatic macromastia or breast symmetry were included in this study. All specimens of reduction mammoplasty were submitted for pathological examination and at least four tissue sections were taken for each breast. Among 392 patients, pathological examinations revealed proliferative lesions with atypia in 7 patients (1.7%) and invasive carcinoma in 1 patient (0.2%). Although proliferative lesions with atypia were found to increase in number compared with the patients under 40 years, there was no statistical significance found. Ductal in situ carcinoma was demonstrated in 1 patient (1%) younger than 40 years. Although there is no consensus formed for when to send mammoplasty specimens for pathological analysis or how many numbers of tissue sections to submit, we recommend routine pathological analysis of mammoplasty specimens and submitting at least four tissue sections regardless of patients’ age.