Is core needle biopsy effective at diagnosing male breast lesions?

Purpose: The objective of this study was to examine the diagnostic accuracy of sonographically guided core needle biopsy (CNB) of breast lesions in men.

Methods: This was a retrospective study where we analyzed consecutive sonographically guided 14-gauge CNB results on 234 male breast lesions. The CNB accuracy is determined by the comparison between the CNB and its corresponding excisional biopsy or to long-term follow-up imaging.

Results: Sonographically guided CNB was effective to collect satisfactory samples from all 234 lesions. Out of those, 58.55% (137/234) were benign, 38.0% (89/234) were malignant, 1.71% (4/234) were papilloma with atypia and 1.71% (4/234) were atypical ductal hyperplasia lesions. Underestimation occurred in 3.4% (8/234) of the lesions. As for the detection of breast malignancy, the sensitivity of the CNB is 98.9%, specificity is 100%, negative predictive value is 99.3%, positive predictive value is 100%, false positive is 0% and false negative is 1.1%. The overall accuracy of sonographically guided CNB as a diagnostic tool is 99.6%.

Conclusion: Sonographically guided 14-gauge CNB is an accurate, reliable and low invasive procedure for assessing breast lesions in men. Triple tests and follow-up checks of benign cases are essential for a successful breast biopsy program in men.