The main objectives were to describe the measures taken by women to detect breast disease prior to invitation to participate in a screening programme for breast cancer, and to identify factors related to non-participation in this programme. A cross-sectional study was designed at the Breast Cancer Early Detection Program of Sabadell-Cerdanyola (BCEDP), using data collected in interviews conducted face to face or over the telephone with 13 760 women participating in the programme and 280 non-participants. A total of 74.2% of the participants versus 70.4% of the non-participants reported having taken measures to detect breast disease, and 71.7% of the participants had undergone mammography versus 69.6% of the non-participants. Of the 10 057 women who had had mammograms, 58% had done so less than 2 years previously. Factors found to be associated to non-participation in the multivariate analysis were: higher level of education, higher occupational skills or working at home, self- or gynaecological examination of breasts, and having received hormone replacement therapy. Higher age group was the only factor that increased the probability of not having undergone mammography previously. Despite the high prevalence of prior measures to detect breast cancer and the similar prevalence between participating and non-participating women, this behaviour is much less prevalent in the group of women 60 years of age or older.

Almost one third of HGG patients can undergo only a biopsy and not debulking surgery. Although radiotherapy improves survival, only 50% of them complete the treatment. An individualised approach to these patients is needed to facilitate a correct analysis of therapy results. New therapies must be investigated in these patients.

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Three cases of contralateral trigeminal neuralgia as a false localizing sign in intracranial tumors are reported. In each patient (meningioma, 2 cases; cholesteatoma, 1 case) the tumor was asymptomatic, so that intracranial tumor had not been suspected preoperatively. In all cases, tumors were large and firm. The tumor was supratentorial in two cases. In one case, a cortically mediated mechanism may have caused the neuralgia, whereas in the remaining two cases distortion and displacement of the brain stem and compression of the contralateral Meckel's cave would explain the trigeminal nerve signs.

The objective of this study was to assess the usefulness of stereotactic large-core needle biopsy (LCNB) in the management of nonpalpable breast lesions (NBL) and compare it with stereotactic fine-needle aspiration biopsy (SFNA) performed simultaneously in a significant number of cases. From November 1993 through June 1997, 510 consecutive patients with NBL underwent 14-gauge LCNB with 354 women undergoing simultaneous 21-gauge SFNA in the same lesson. Mammographic findings lesion size, number of core biopsy specimens, complications and diagnoses of both techniques were analysed. Surgical biopsy, tumorectomy or mastectomy was indicated for malignancy or poor correlation between SFNA or LCNB results and clinical or radiological findings. Values of diagnostic accuracy of both LCNB and SFNA were determined. The ratio benign surgical biopsies/malignant surgical biopsies (BB/CB) of the series was calculated. A total of 171 patients underwent surgical treatment: in 31 (18.1%) a benign process or atypical ductal hyperplasia was the final diagnosis. The ratio BB/CB was 0.22. Sensitivity and specificity were 93.2 and 100%, respectively, for LCNB, and 77.2 and 92.3%, respectively, for SFNA with cytological analysis. Large-core needle biopsy provides more accurate diagnosis than SFNA in the management of nonpalpable breast lesions and obviates a surgical diagnostic procedure in a significant number of cases.