The higher incidence of breast cancer, the improvements in diagnosis and treatment, together with the growing life expectancy have brought about an increase in the number of patients at risk for bilateral breast carcinoma. The aim of this study is to describe the characteristics of patients suffering from bilateral breast carcinoma who underwent surgery at the Breast Pathology Service of the Buenos Aires British Hospital and to analyze impact on survival. Between January 1970 and May 2007, 4,085 cases of breast carcinoma in 3,864 patients were treated at the Breast Diseases Division of the Buenos Aires British Hospital. A retrospective study of 194 patients with bilateral breast carcinoma was carried out: 80 synchronous and 114 metachronous. In order to compare survival, a group of 2,237 patients with unilateral breast carcinoma who had undergone surgery was analyzed. The risk of developing a contralateral breast carcinoma was 0.9% per year, with an accumulated risk at 15 years of 12.75%. The 5-year survival was 85.9% for unilateral carcinomas, 94.6% for metachronous carcinoma, and 63.3% for synchronous carcinoma. The 15-year survival was 65.5% for unilateral carcinomas, 52.3% for metachronous, and 37.2% for synchronous. The incidence of bilateral carcinomas is low. Survival was worse in patients with metachronous carcinoma diagnosed within 5 years of the first malignancy. Survival in patients with metachronous carcinoma diagnosed after 5 years is similar to those with unilateral carcinoma. Synchronous carcinoma was associated to worse survival, being an independent risk factor for mortality.

The latest advances in diagnostic and therapeutic procedures for breast cancer have provided valuable technological breakthroughs. Yet the long-term consequences of these modern methods are still quite unclear. Such is the case for stereotactic or ultrasound-guided histologic needle biopsy and skin-sparing mastectomy. We report on three patients who presented with multicentric breast cancer diagnosed by stereotactic needle biopsy and treated by skin-sparing mastectomy. All three patients developed recurrence at the core needle entry site. Records of 58 patients with breast cancer who were treated by skin-sparing mastectomy followed by immediate reconstruction (with transverse rectus abdominis muscle [TRAM] flap or tissue expander) at the Breast Diseases Division of Buenos Aires British Hospital between December 1999 and December 2003 were reviewed retrospectively. Eleven of these patients were diagnosed by histologic needle biopsy. The mean follow-up was 28 months (range 5-60 months). Three (skin or subcutaneous) local recurrences at the needle entry site, diagnosed in a mean time of 23.6 months (16, 22, and 23 months), were reported. The three patients underwent complete resection with clear margins, radiation therapy to the "neobreast," and tamoxifen. All three patients are disease free with a mean postrecurrence follow-up of 24.3 months (30, 23, and 22 months). Based on the evidence of displacement of tumor cells and the potential nonresection of such tumor seeding at the time of skin-sparing mastectomy, as well as the poor probability of postoperative radiation therapy, we recommend surgical resection of the needle biopsy tract, including the dermal entry site, at the time of mastectomy.

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Introduction: Medical knowledge regarding preservation of fertility and pregnancy in patients with breast cancer (BC) is of interest. We, therefore, decided to conduct a survey on this issue among professionals involved in the treatment of BC in Argentina. Materials and methods: A survey was conducted and sent by email to 3,412 contacts in the Argentine Mastology Society (Sociedad Argentina de Mastología, or SAM) database, with responses from 396 physicians. The survey design was based on the Lambertini 2017 survey. To the author's knowledge, it is the first Argentine survey to address this issue. Results: The frequency with which the impact of cancer treatment on the fertility of young patients was addressed by the respondent and referred to a fertility specialist was 'always' and 'almost always' in 86.8% and 78.5% of cases, respectively. Conclusions: The level of knowledge is comparable to the data presented by other surveys. Membership in a Mastology Unit was associated with more current treatment. Continued work on the training of professionals is necessary to facilitate communication, information and guidance of patients of childbearing age who are going to have cancer treatment in order to advise them on fertility preservation, as well as the possibility of pregnancy after diagnosis of BC, and to be able to provide better care to those with BC associated with pregnancy.