Fibroadenomas are considered a common cause of discrete breast masses in young women. The diagnosis of these changes is based on the clinically relevant trinity of manual examination, imaging methods and non-surgical biopsy (which is sometimes also known as the triple test).
Total diagnostic efficacy of the aforementioned three modalities is between 70% and 80%, although they can distinguish between benign and malignant lesions with 95% accuracy rate. Generally there is an agreement that fibroadenomas can be successfully diagnosed before an operation with a high degree of certainty.
Medical history and manual palpation
Women who present with breast lumps should undergo a thorough medical evaluation, which consists of detailed medical and family history (noting in the process the occurrence of possible breast-related issues in the past), history of radiation or any malignancy, as well as any …show more content…
They are well-delineated with a “rubbery” consistency (akin to the consistency of a rubber ball). Mobility can be elicited by pressing on one side of the tumor with one finger, with a “bounce back” motion once the finger is released.
Imaging methods
As mammography has a poor diagnostic yield in the age group when fibroadenomas are most commonly observed, breast sonography is the method of choice for the diagnosis of these lesions. On ultrasound a fibroadenoma is sharply circumscribed with a round shape, an internal echo pattern, and posterior acoustic shadowing.
Nevertheless, mammography can also be employed in the diagnostic procedure, showing images of a well-circumscribed and homogenous tumor with sharp margins. In some instances the mammogram may also show a thin and lucent line called a “halo” that surrounds the tumor; this finding represents the connective tissue that delineates the observed fibroadenoma from the surrounding breast tissue.
Aspiration
Total diagnostic efficacy of the aforementioned three modalities is between 70% and 80%, although they can distinguish between benign and malignant lesions with 95% accuracy rate. Generally there is an agreement that fibroadenomas can be successfully diagnosed before an operation with a high degree of certainty.
Medical history and manual palpation
Women who present with breast lumps should undergo a thorough medical evaluation, which consists of detailed medical and family history (noting in the process the occurrence of possible breast-related issues in the past), history of radiation or any malignancy, as well as any …show more content…
They are well-delineated with a “rubbery” consistency (akin to the consistency of a rubber ball). Mobility can be elicited by pressing on one side of the tumor with one finger, with a “bounce back” motion once the finger is released.
Imaging methods
As mammography has a poor diagnostic yield in the age group when fibroadenomas are most commonly observed, breast sonography is the method of choice for the diagnosis of these lesions. On ultrasound a fibroadenoma is sharply circumscribed with a round shape, an internal echo pattern, and posterior acoustic shadowing.
Nevertheless, mammography can also be employed in the diagnostic procedure, showing images of a well-circumscribed and homogenous tumor with sharp margins. In some instances the mammogram may also show a thin and lucent line called a “halo” that surrounds the tumor; this finding represents the connective tissue that delineates the observed fibroadenoma from the surrounding breast tissue.
Aspiration