Fine needle aspiration cytology of minimal breast cancer in Istria County.

Breast cancer is the most frequent malignant tumour and leading cause of death in women aged 35 to 64 years in Istria County. The minimal invasive carcinoma and in situ carcinoma have a better prognosis so we try to find them during preventive exams. The aim of this study was to identify minimal breast cancers in fine needle aspiration biopsies of breast lesions made in Pula General Hospital between the years 2006 and 2008. There were 39 tumours with a maximal diameter of less than 10 mm in 1316 biopsies and 251 cytologically diagnosed breast cancers. In most cases, they were solitary, well differentiated neoplasms (48.7%). They were diagnosed in women aged 39 to 89 years and most frequently found in women aged 60 to 69 years. The most frequent histological type of operated minimal breast carcinomas was invasive ductal carcinoma. In that period, the minimal breast cancer percentage of all cytologically diagnosed breast cancers was 15.5% but in the first 6 months of 2009, the result was 48.7%.