
Anatomical Pathology > Surgical Pathology > High Yield Reviews > Breast Index (this page)

A high yield review of
Tiffany M. Graham, M.D.
(4th year Pathology Resident)
Breast
Pathology
Table of Contents.

Recent Posts.
Breast (Cytology) Mindmap
Click on Attachment or Image below to download the original PDF document
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Interactive Breast Mindmap
Click on the image below to open this INTERACTIVE BREAST PATHOLOGY MINDMAP
for a rapid review of the pure "need to know" topics in breast pathology.
To expand a topic, double click on the underlined topic. Close the "branch" by double clicking again.
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Click on the Image to open this interactive mindmap in a new window
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Breast Basics.
Breast
Anatomy
& Histology
In order to learn about the disease, one must fully understand the basic anatomy and histology of the breast. Here is a quick recap of benign breast tissue.
Breast development occurs under the control of many hormones such as prolactin, growth hormones, estrogen, progesterone, and adrenocorticoids. Hormonal fluctuation is greatest during puberty, pregnancy and menopause; these changes can be appreciated histologically.
Breast imaging studies are performed in the workup of breast cancer. Pathologists are expected to correlate the histologic findings with imaging to make an accurate diagnosis. Click to learn more...
Benign Breast Disease.
Benign diseases of the breast can be categorized as non-proliferative, proliferative and proliferative lesions with atypia. Proliferative lesions have an increased risk for breast cancer development. This post contains a quick overview of benign breast lesions before we delve further into the specifics of each disease. Click to learn more
“Fibrocystic disease” also referred to as "fibrocystic changes (FCC)" is the wastebasket term for benign breast disease characterized by fibrosis, cysts, inflammation, and a host of other benign changes. This post contains all the highlights of the various histologic patterns that encompass fibrocystic breast disease.
Non Proliferative fibrocystic changes:
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Cyst formation/ Duct ectasia
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Stromal fibrosis
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Apocrine metaplasia
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Adenosis
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Calcifications
Proliferative fibrocystic changes:
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Sclerosing Adenosis
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Columnar Cell Change (CCC)
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Flat epithelial atypia (FEA)
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*Usual ductal hyperplasia (UDH)
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*Papillomas
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*Radial scar/radial sclerosing lesion
* = Topics covered in separate posts
Refers to an increased amount of breast tissue in a male. Often due to excess estrogen. Can be idiopathic or associated with BRCA2 mutation. Histology shows enlarged ducts with increased stroma (NO lobules).