Focused ultrasound ablation surgery for multiple breast fibroadenomas: pathological and follow-up results

Abstract

Objective

To investigate the histopathological findings and follow-up outcome of focused ultrasound ablation surgery (FUAS) treatment of multiple fibroadenomas (FA).

Methods

A total of 20 patients with 101 multiple FAs were enrolled. After one session FUAS ablation, 21 lesions (≥15.0 mm) were surgically removed within one week for histopathological analysis, including 2, 3, 5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride (TTC) staining, H&E staining, nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) -flavretin enzyme staining, Transmission electron microscope (TEM) and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The remaining 80 lesions were followed up at 3, 6 and 12 months after treatment.

Results

All ablation procedures were performed successfully. Pathologic findings showed that irreversible damage of FA was confirmed. TTC, H&E and NADH staining and TEM/SEM demonstrated tumor cell death and tumor structural destruction at the gross, cellular, and subcellular levels, respectively. The median shrinkage rate at 12 months post-FUAS was 66.4 (43.6, 89.5) %.

Conclusion

Histopathological analysis for FAs after FUAS treatment proved that FUAS could effectively induce irreversible coagulative necrosis of FA, and the tumor volume would gradually shrink in follow-up. FUAS was safe and effective to treat multiple FAs with good cosmesis.

Key points

• This study was the first study of detailed histopathological analysis for FAs after FUAS treatment.

• FUAS can effectively induce irreversible coagulative necrosis of fibroadenoma cells.

• FUAS ablation of multiple fibroadenomas is safe and effective.

Keywords:

• Multiple fibroadenomas
• focused ultrasound ablation surgery
• histopathology
• coagulative necrosis
• shrinkage rate

Disclosure statement

Zhibiao Wang is a senior consultant to Chongqing Haifu Medical Technology Co., Ltd. The other authors report no conflict of interest to declare. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.

Data availability statement

The authors confirm that the data supporting the findings of this study are available within the article.

Additional information

Funding

This work was partially supported by the Foundation of State Key Laboratory of Ultrasound in Medicine and Engineering [Grant No. 2021KFKT016].