Wires should not be used routinely on skin scars for mammograms after breast-conserving surgery.
The accuracy of skin wire markers on surgical incision scars during mammography to locate the primary tumor excision site was prospectively determined for 100 women. The shortest distance between the excision site and skin scar wire on either the craniocaudal or mediolateral oblique projection was 10 mm or greater in 48 per cent of patients and 20 mm or greater in 30 per cent of patients. Wire markers placed on skin incision scars during mammography after breast-conserving surgery are inadequate for the localization of the primary excision site and should not be used routinely.
Department of Radiation Oncology, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, SUNY at Buffalo, New York 14263, USA.
G M
GM
Proulx
B
B
Heller
P C
PC
Stomper
D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery; D002921:Cicatrix; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008327:Mammography / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D015412:Mastectomy, Segmental; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D013997:Time Factors