Author Information: Juan Palazzo, Professor of Pathology, Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, PA

Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in women in the United States. For the pathologist, almost any breast lesion may produce diagnostic difficulty, especially due to frequently small samples (core biopsy specimens) and a variety of mimics and variants seen in specific types of lesions. Additionally, the difficulty of breast lesion diagnosis has risen dramatically in recent years due to the increased emphasis on stratifying patients for appropriate therapy on an individual basis; the wider range of both local and systemic therapeutic options, and the potential for earlier diagnosis through increased mammographic breast screening leading to a higher likelihood of a favorable outcome. Difficult Diagnoses in Breast Pathology provides a highly visual presentation of the major problems and questions that a pathologist is likely to encounter in the evaluation of common and uncommon breast diseases. Coverage includes needle core biopsy interpretation, diagnosis of precursor lesions, early stage disease, and recognition of neoplastic mimics and other misleading variants. In addition, this book emphasizes particularly difficult areas including the use of newer immunohistochemical markers. Throughout, the emphasis is on an easily accessible presentation with tables and lists of key points summarizing major findings and numerous high-quality images supporting the text. Difficult Diagnoses in Breast Pathology will be a valuable reference for every pathologist who deals with the diagnosis of breast diseases.

Difficult Diagnoses in Breast Pathology Features:

* Each chapter authored by recognized expert in the area
* Hundreds of high-quality images
* Tables and key points in each chapter summarize the most important findings
* Coverage based on addressing in detail the real-world diagnostic problems the pathologist will face in daily practice

Contents: 1. The diagnostic challenges of core needle biopsy interpretation, 2. Precursor lesions, 3. Papillary lesions, 4. Flat Epithelial Atypia, 5. Adenosis, 6. Microinvasive carcinoma: diagnosis and pitfalls, 7. Lesions with good prognosis, 8. Mesenchymal lesions, 9. Lymphomas of the breast, 10. Applications of immunohistochemistry in breast pathology