RADIAL SCAR VERSUS TUBULAR CARCINOMA OF THE BREAST - A COMPARATIVE-STUDY WITH QUANTITATIVE TECHNIQUES (MORPHOMETRY, IMAGE- AND FLOW-CYTOMETRY)

The present study is focused on the differential diagnosis between rad ial scar (RS) and tubular carcinoma (TC) using morphometrical and cyto photometrical analysis (static and flow cytometry) of a number of hist ologically well-established RS cases (17 lesions) compared with 6 earl y infiltrating small TC with sclerotic stroma and pseudo-RS fields. On e case displayed both RS and TC foci in contiguity. Mean nuclear area was larger in the group of tubular carcinomas (51.0 mu(2)) than in the cases of radial sclerosis (38.30 mu(2)). We also found a larger numbe r of aneuploid cases in tubular carcinomas measured by image cytometry , but both types of lesions were diploid when measured by flow cytomet ry; only one case of radial scar resulted aneuploid.