A 37 year old woman has cyclical premenstrual pain. Her breasts have a "lumpy-bumpy" texture on palpation. A biopsy is performed. The histopathologic features include small cysts lined by epithelial cells with apocrine metaplasia, calcium deposits, areas of fibrosis, increased number of acini (adenosis), and foci of florid hyperplasia of ductal epithelium. Which of these changes increase the risk of breast cancer?
Fibrocystic changes usually come to clinical attention by causing pain(often cyclical, in premenstrual phase), palpable lumps, or mammographic densities and calcifications. A "lumpy-bumpy" texture is caused by cysts and fibrosis. Fibrocystic changes, per se, do not increase the risk of developing breast cancer, unless there are associated proliferative changes. Epithelial hyperplasia is defined as an increase in the number of epithelial cell layers in the ductal epithelium. Florid epithelial hyperplasia leads to an increased risk of developing carcinoma, especially if there is associated cellular atypia (atypical ductal hyperplasia). Adenosis refers to an increase in the number of acini and can be observed in fibrocystic changes as well as in other breast conditions, such as sclerosing adenosis. Physiologic adenosis is pa of the changes that occur during pregnancy. Adenosis is not associated with increased risk of breast cancer, except as a component of sclerosing adenosis. Apocrine metaplasia describes a benign change of breast epithelial cells that come to resemble the apocrine epithelium of sweat glands. Apocrine cells have abundant granular eosinophilic cytoplasm. Apocrine metaplasia is seen frequently in fibrocystic changes, as well as in normal breast. Calcium deposition is a nonspecific finding that may occur in a number of both benign and malignant breast changes, including fibrocystic changes, ductal carcinoma in situ, and invasive carcinoma. Calcification is not clinically significant except for its diagnostic value. Mammographic detection of calcium may serve to guide biopsy procedures. Ref: Hunt K.K., Newman L.A., Copeland E.M., Bland K.I. (2010). Chapter 17. The Breast. In F.C. Brunicardi, D.K. Andersen, T.R. Billiar, D.L. Dunn, J.G. Hunter, J.B. Matthews, R.E. Pollock (Eds), Schwaz's Principles of Surgery, 9e.
Adenosis
Apocrine metaplasia
Calcium deposits
Epithelial hyperplasia