A method has been devised to calculate breast volumes from mammograms. This has been applied to mammograms from 42 women with breast cancer and 42 age-matched normal controls. No difference in breast volumes was noted. Images Fig. 1

No abstract

The importance of pain as a presenting symptom of breast cancer has been assessed in a series of 240 patients with operable breast cancer over four years. From an analysis of the case histories of 36 patients the diagnosis proved difficult in one-quarter of the cancers. This is explained by the high incidence of subclinical and lobular carcinoma in the group. Cancer must be seriously considered as a diagnosis in patients presenting with welllocalised breast pain of recent onset. These patients should be followed for at least one year after the onset of the pain before cancer is confidently excluded.

A prospective study has been conducted on 4954 female volunteers from the Island of Guernsey between 1977 and 1985 to examine risk factors for breast cancer and their relationship to mammographic parenchymal patterns as assessed by Wolfe's method of grading. Up to September 1988, 69 women had developed breast cancer, 11 of whom were prevalent cases being diagnosed within six months of mammography. The remaining incident cases were diagnosed six to 126 months (median 65 months) after entry to the study. Univariate analysis showed that the distribution of Wolfe grades in the population was significantly associated with menopausal status, age, parity, adiposity, age at menarche, age at first childbirth and use of oral contraception, but not with a family history of breast cancer. Multivariate analysis of the data for these variables from either pre- and/or post-menopausal women indicated that age, parity and adiposity were significantly related to Wolfe grade pattern. Age had an opposite effect in pre- compared with postmenopausal women thus the probability of either a P2 or DY pattern increased with increasing age in premenopausal but decreased in postmenopausal women so that incidence peaked around the menopause. Other variables did not achieve significance in the multivariate analysis. Odds ratios (ORs) were calculated for women with P2 or DY patterns using those with N1 or P1 grades as the reference group. The ORs were determined at two censoring times; one at five years and the other to include the most recent follow-up of this cohort. The ORs were adjusted for years of follow-up, age and adiposity and in postmenopausal women adjustment was also made for age at menarche.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

No abstract

Fibroadenolipoma is a well recognised but unusual benign tumour of the breast. It is a circumscribed lesion composed of fat and other breast tissues which may be normal or which may show various benign changes. The presence of smooth muscle has been recorded but was not found in our cases. A series of eight cases is described, occurring over a period of 10 years in a series of 20 000 mammograms. Radiological and pathological correlation is made and histological changes are described. Our findings are compared with other reviews in the literature. The lesions are usually diagnosed radiologically.

No abstract

Normal premenopausal Japanese women have significantly more favourable mammographic parenchymal patterns (Wolfe Grades) than comparable British women. This finding is unaffected when the women are stratified by age, Quetelet's Index, age at menarche, age at first birth, and parity.