AB174. SOH22ABS204. The incidence and significance of incidental breast lesions identified on computed tomography in a tertiary referral centre: what the breast surgeon needs to know
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AB174. SOH22ABS204. The incidence and significance of incidental breast lesions identified on computed tomography in a tertiary referral centre: what the breast surgeon needs to know

Markus Kostka, Shane Keogh, Aisling Fawaz, Jason Mahony, Gerard O’Donoghue

Department of General and Breast Surgery, University Hospital Waterford, Waterford, Ireland

Background: The increased use of computed tomography (CT) in clinical practice results in a plethora of “incidental” findings, including breast lesions. Despite not being the primary method for the evaluation of the breast thoracic CT incorporates the whole breast tissue. Inaccurately assessed lesions can result in missed malignancy therefore an understanding of the significance of these findings, in the absence of clinical suspicion, is important for clinical decision making.

Methods: A retrospective analysis of the incidence and outcome of incidental breast lesions detected on CT scans conducted for unrelated pathologies during the period from 2016–June 2021 was performed. All reports containing the key word “breast” were included. All patients with known breast cancer undergoing CT for staging and surveillance were excluded. Clinical correlation and follow-up investigations, including histopathology, were reviewed from patients’ medical records.

Results: Out of 3,866 screened CTs, 93 reports from 2016–2017 satisfied the inclusion criteria. Of these, 35 contained concerning incidental breast findings or clinical correlation/follow-up was suggested. Seventeen of these patients underwent mammographic investigation and 4 underwent ultrasound guided core needle biopsy. One malignant lesion was identified on histopathological analysis in a 63-year-old female (intraductal carcinoma, Grade 2), and 3 benign breast abnormalities (2 fibroadenoma, 1 myofibroblastoma).

Conclusions: CT is increasingly becoming an important contributor to the detection of occult breast lesions. These lesions can include first presentation of primary malignancies, or benign breast lesions. Increased radiological awareness and prompt specialised breast unit follow up is important to improve diagnostic efficacy.

Keywords: Breast cancer; incidental finding; computed tomography (CT); triple assessment; mammogram

Acknowledgments

Funding: None.

Footnote

Conflicts of Interest: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

Ethical Statement: The authors are accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.

Open Access Statement: This is an Open Access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0), which permits the non-commercial replication and distribution of the article with the strict proviso that no changes or edits are made and the original work is properly cited (including links to both the formal publication through the relevant DOI and the license). See: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/.

doi: 10.21037/map-22-ab174
Cite this abstract as: Kostka M, Keogh S, Fawaz A, Mahony J, O’Donoghue G. AB174. SOH22ABS204. The incidence and significance of incidental breast lesions identified on computed tomography in a tertiary referral centre: what the breast surgeon needs to know. Mesentery Peritoneum 2022;6:AB174.

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