APOCRINE CARCINOMA - CLINICAL AND MAMMOGRAPHIC FEATURES

PURPOSE: To describe the mammographic features of apocrine carcinoma a nd assess the patterns of calcifications associated with these lesions . MATERIALS AND METHODS: Clinical and mammographic features from 17 pa tients with apocrine carcinoma were retrospectively reviewed. Special attention was paid to the presence of mixed form, diffusely scattered microcalcifications on mammograms. RESULTS: Patients were referred for clinical(n = 10), mammographic (n = 2), or both clinical and mammogra phic (n = 5) abnormalities. Findings at clinical examination included a palpable breast mass (n = 12), multiple breast masses (n = 1), and b loody nipple discharge (n = 2); two patients had normal findings. Four teen patients had opacities at mammography. These opacities were assoc iated with microcalcifications in 10 cases. Three patients had microca lcifications without opacities; one of those three patients exhibited a mixed form of diffusely scattered calcifications. CONCLUSION: Clinic al and mammographic features of apocrine carcinoma do not differ from those of invasive ductal carcinoma.