Factors affecting the efficacy of ultrasound- guided vacuum-assisted percutaneous excision for removal of benign breast lesions

Objective. This study was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of complete removal and factors affecting the presence of a residual mass and complications after ultrasound-guided vacuum-assisted percutaneous removal of benign breast lesions. Methods. We retrospectively evaluated ultrasound images and medical records of 263 breast masses from 199 patients that were removed with an ultrasound-guided vacuum-assisted device. All lesions were assumed as benign on ultrasound imaging or had been confirmed as benign by a previous core needle biopsy. The influence of the size, distance from the nipple, number of lesions removed at a time, and pathologic diagnosis of all of the removed masses on the completeness of the removal and the presence of complications was analyzed. The Mann-Whitney U test was used in the statistical analysis. Results. The complete removal rate for ultrasound imaging immediately after the procedure was 95.8%, and the rate at more than 6 months for follow-up ultrasound imaging was 92.3%. Larger lesions, lesions closer to the nipple, and cases in which multiple lesions were removed at a time showed the presence of more residual lesions. Lesions closer to the nipple and cases in which multiple lesions were removed simultaneously developed more hematomas (P < .05). Conclusions. Ultrasound-guided vacuum-assisted percutaneous excision showed high effectiveness for the removal of benign breast masses. However, more attention should be given to certain lesions to increase the efficacy.