BACKGROUND Breast lesions have gained importance globally due to significant increase in mortality and morbidity associated with breast cancer which is now the commonest malignancy worldwide. Previously, cervical cancer was the most common cancer in Indian women but now the incidence of breast cancer has outnumbered cervical cancer and is the leading cause of death in women due to cancer. Although advances in imaging techniques and increased use of fine needle aspiration cytology have greatly assisted the preoperative evaluation of breast lesions, histopathology remains the gold standard in differentiating benign and malignant lesions. The present study was carried out to know the frequency, age distribution and histopathological profile of neoplastic as well as non-neoplastic lesions of breast. METHODS This retrospective one-year study was conducted in the Department of Pathology at a tertiary health care institute from January 2017 - December 2017. All specimens of mastectomy, lumpectomy, and Tru-Cut biopsies were studied except treated cases of malignancy. Detailed gross examination was done followed by thorough sampling and processing. Tissue sections were stained with haematoxylin and eosin. Different lesions were studied by microscopic examination. Neoplastic lesions were classified based on the WHO (World Health Organization) classification (2012). RESULTS A total of 980 cases was studied out of which 951 were females and 29 were males. The benign neoplasms constituted 329 cases (33.57 %), malignant neoplasms 521 cases (53.16 %) and non-neoplastic lesions 130 cases (13.26 %). In our study fibroadenoma was the most common benign neoplasm (n = 292) and fibrocystic disease formed the major population of non-neoplastic benign lesion (n = 66). Vast majority of cases with malignant neoplasms had invasive carcinoma of no special type (NST) (n = 479). Significantly higher incidence of malignancy was noted in the age group of 41 - 80 years and benign tumours were mostly seen in 2nd and 3rd decade. The ratio of malignant to benign lesions was slightly higher in our study. CONCLUSIONS Large number of carcinoma breast was seen in our study which is a serious concern. So, design and implementation of screening programs and control of the risk factors seem essential. This study emphasizes the importance of early and accurate histopathological diagnosis of breast lesions. KEYWORDS Neoplastic, Non-Neoplastic, Breast Lesions, Histopathology, Invasive Carcinoma Breast
