HISTO: Breast Flashcards
How do you investigate breast disease?
Triple assessment
- Clinical
- Imaging - sonography, mammography, MRI
- Pathology - cytology or histopathology
How is cytology carried out?
Lesion aspirated by 16/18 gauge needle and added to a slide and spread with stains to see the cells
What is the cytopathology breast coding?
- C1 - inadequate
- C2 - benign
- C3 - atypia, probably benign
- C4 - suspicious malignancy
- C5 - malignant
NB:
M coding - clinical (1-5)
U coding - radiological (1-5)
What is seen on each photo?
- RBC and can’t see monolayer
- Epithelial - sesame like and myoepithelial
- Fat cell - fat dissolved out during processing
- Cellular aspirate which you can look at more carefully, monolayer is seen and lots of myoepithelial cells. Epithelial and myoepithelial cells are the hallmark of the breast grandular unit.
- Glandular tissue seen to be forming branches BUT this is more likely to be a tumour
What guidance is used for biopsy?
Ultrasound
What is the difference between histopathology and cytology?
Histopathology:
Intact tissue removed, fixed in formalin, embedded in paraffin wax, thinly sliced, stained with H&E.
Core biopsies, surgical excisions.
Takes 24 hours to process.
Architectural & cellular detail.
What cells/units are seen here?
- Terminal duct lobular units - lactiferous duct continues to branch in tissue
- Final functional units are acini which have secretory cells and these are blind ended ductules
- Cells shown by arrows make milk/secretions and the myoepithelial cells are the ones which cause contraction to get it out of the lactiferous ducts and out through the nipple
What are features of duct ectasia?
- Inflammation and dilation of large breast ducts.
- Aetiology unclear.
- Usually presents with nipple discharge.
- Sometimes causes breast pain, breast mass and nipple retraction.
- Cytology of nipple discharge shows proteinaceous material and inflammatory cells only (e.g. macrophages).
- Benign condition with no increased risk of malignancy.
Easily diagnosed on aspirates or secretions. Usually secretions are seen when they are not expected.
What is this?
Duct ectasia
- BM and fibrous tissue around is seen
- Duct is greatly enlarged
- Sometimes self resolves and other times it may need to be excised
What are the features of acute mastitis? What organism usually causes this?
- Acute inflammation in the breast.
- Often seen in lactating women due to cracked skin and stasis of milk.
- May also complicate duct ectasia.
- Staphylococci the usual organism.
- Presents with a painful red breast.
- Drainage & antibiotics usually curative.
What is this?
Cytology of acute mastitis
- Vacuolated large cells - purple is nucleus
- BAckgroung shows trinucelated cells which are polymorphs
- There is a mix of cells
- Inflammatory condition
What are the features of fat necrosis?
- An inflammatory reaction to damaged adipose tissue.
- Caused by trauma, surgery, radiotherapy.
- Presents with a breast mass.
- Benign condition.
What is this?
Fat necrosis
- Oval cells - histiocytes (?) due to smearing on slide
- Macrophages seen
- Some cells joining together
- Dark cells are lymphocytes
What are the features of fibrocystic disease?
- A group of alterations in the breast which reflect normal, albeit exaggerated, responses to hormonal influences.
- Very common.
- Presents with breast lumpiness.
- No increased risk for subsequent breast carcinoma.
What is this?
Fibrocystic disease
- HNE stain used
- normal lobule to middle far left with acini and ducts
- Due to imbalance prom prog and eostrogen
- Some units are calcifying
- Calcification is seen on mammogram but on histopathology you find out that it is actually benign
What are the features of fibroadenoma?
- AKA breast mouse - moves easily
- A benign fibroepithelial neoplasm of the breast.
- Common.
- Presents as a circumscribed mobile breast lump in young women aged 20-30.
- Simple “shelling out” curative.
What is this?
Fibroadenoma
FNA (left)
- monolayer sheet
- arrows point to myoepithelial cells
- sesame darker cells confirm that benign
Light microscope
- well circumscribed edge
- glands compressed due to proliferation of fibrous tissue
What are the tumours of phyllodes tumours?
- A group of potentially aggressive fibroepithelial neoplasms of the breast.
- Uncommon tumours.
- Present as enlarging masses in women aged over 50.
- Some may arise within pre-existing fibroadenomas.
- Vast majority behave in a benign fashion but a small proportion can behave more aggressively.
What is this?
Phyllodes tumour
- Stroma is cellular, dense and shows mitosis.
- A lot of cells in the tissue that is present
- Phyllodes means “leaf like”
- Cleft structures and leaf like structure
- All glandular epithelial cells on the outside
- Middle contains orange(?) cells
What are the features of intraductal papilloma?
- A benign papillary tumour arising within the duct system of the breast.
- Arise within small terminal ductules (peripheral papillomas) or larger lactiferous ducts (central papillomas)
- Common.
- Seen mostly in women aged 40-60.
- Central papillomas present with nipple discharge.
- Peripheral papillomas may remain clinically silent if small.
- Excision of involved duct is curative (small portion can form invasive tumours later)
What is this?
FNA of Intraductal papilloma
Rounded clusters of cells on left are characteristic