Biomaterial Database

Is conservative management of fibroadenomas feasible? 5-year results from the Durban Breast Unit. 2021

N Barakzai, and E Mansoor, and I Buccimazza

Department of General Surgery, Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine, University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

BACKGROUND Fibroadenomas (FAs) usually present in young women and, despite being the commonest benign breast masses, are often excised. This study aimed to assess the results of a conservative management protocol in the setting of dedicated breast clinics to reassess the validity of this conservative approach. METHODS A retrospective chart review of a prospectively maintained database of the index presentation of patients diagnosed with FAs on triple assessment at the breast clinics of Inkosi Albert Luthuli Central Hospital (IALCH) and Addington Hospital (ADH) was undertaken. Women under 35 years with FA less than 5 cm and agreeable to the 5-year conservative management strategy from 2008 to 2015 were included. Variables assessed over the 5-year study period included adherence to clinic visits and any change in size of the lesion(s). RESULTS Three hundred and six women were studied. The mean age of presentation was 21.5 years (IQR 12-34), and the mean FA size was 2.43 cm (IQR 0.5-4.8). 72.9% were of African ethnicity. 76.5% had a single FA, and in 16.3%, they were bilateral. 50.7% of patients were lost to follow-up, and 9.6% (n = 25) had spontaneous resolution of their FA. Conservative management of FAs was feasible in only 26.1% of patients. CONCLUSIONS Conservative management of FAs over 5 years is not practical in our local setting due to the high patient attrition rate. In those who completed the 5-year observation period, only 1 in 10 patients had complete resolution of their FA.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D001943	Breast Neoplasms	Tumors or cancer of the human BREAST.	Breast Cancer,Breast Tumors,Cancer of Breast,Breast Carcinoma,Cancer of the Breast,Human Mammary Carcinoma,Malignant Neoplasm of Breast,Malignant Tumor of Breast,Mammary Cancer,Mammary Carcinoma, Human,Mammary Neoplasm, Human,Mammary Neoplasms, Human,Neoplasms, Breast,Tumors, Breast,Breast Carcinomas,Breast Malignant Neoplasm,Breast Malignant Neoplasms,Breast Malignant Tumor,Breast Malignant Tumors,Breast Neoplasm,Breast Tumor,Cancer, Breast,Cancer, Mammary,Cancers, Mammary,Carcinoma, Breast,Carcinoma, Human Mammary,Carcinomas, Breast,Carcinomas, Human Mammary,Human Mammary Carcinomas,Human Mammary Neoplasm,Human Mammary Neoplasms,Mammary Cancers,Mammary Carcinomas, Human,Neoplasm, Breast,Neoplasm, Human Mammary,Neoplasms, Human Mammary,Tumor, Breast
D002648	Child	A person 6 to 12 years of age. An individual 2 to 5 years old is CHILD, PRESCHOOL.	Children
D005260	Female		Females
D006757	Hospital Units	Those areas of the hospital organization not considered departments which provide specialized patient care. They include various hospital special care wards.	Hospital Unit,Unit, Hospital,Units, Hospital
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000072700	Conservative Treatment	Therapeutic approaches that are limited, gradual, or well-established as opposed to radical methods.	Conservative Management,Conservative Therapy,Conservative Managements,Conservative Therapies,Conservative Treatments,Management, Conservative,Managements, Conservative,Therapies, Conservative,Therapy, Conservative,Treatment, Conservative,Treatments, Conservative
D000293	Adolescent	A person 13 to 18 years of age.	Adolescence,Youth,Adolescents,Adolescents, Female,Adolescents, Male,Teenagers,Teens,Adolescent, Female,Adolescent, Male,Female Adolescent,Female Adolescents,Male Adolescent,Male Adolescents,Teen,Teenager,Youths
D000328	Adult	A person having attained full growth or maturity. Adults are of 19 through 44 years of age. For a person between 19 and 24 years of age, YOUNG ADULT is available.	Adults
D012189	Retrospective Studies	Studies used to test etiologic hypotheses in which inferences about an exposure to putative causal factors are derived from data relating to characteristics of persons under study or to events or experiences in their past. The essential feature is that some of the persons under study have the disease or outcome of interest and their characteristics are compared with those of unaffected persons.	Retrospective Study,Studies, Retrospective,Study, Retrospective
D013019	South Africa	A republic in southern Africa, the southernmost part of Africa. It has three capitals: Pretoria (administrative), Cape Town (legislative), and Bloemfontein (judicial). Officially the Republic of South Africa since 1960, it was called the Union of South Africa 1910-1960.	Republic of South Africa,Union of South Africa