What is Breast Interventions?
Image Guided Breast Interventions encompass a range of minimally invasive diagnostic and therapeutic procedures for breast lesions, including ultrasound-guided core needle biopsy, vacuum-assisted biopsy, fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC), cyst aspiration, and pre-operative wire or marker localisation. These procedures allow precise sampling and characterisation of breast abnormalities detected on mammography, ultrasound, or MRI providing definitive answers with minimal discomfort and avoiding unnecessary open surgical biopsy. Dr. Shetty performs these procedures using high-resolution ultrasound guidance for optimal accuracy.
Who is this procedure for?
Any woman or man with a suspicious breast lump, architectural distortion, microcalcifications on mammography, a complex cyst, or an MRI-detected lesion requiring further characterisation is a candidate for an image-guided breast intervention. It is also indicated for patients who need pre-operative localisation of a non-palpable lesion identified on imaging before breast-conserving surgery, so the surgeon can precisely excise the correct tissue.
How is the procedure performed?
- Diagnostic ultrasound or recent mammogram images are reviewed to identify, localise, and assess the target lesion.
- The patient is positioned comfortably and the breast skin is cleaned and numbed with local anaesthetic.
- Under real-time ultrasound guidance, the biopsy needle is advanced to the exact position of the lesion with millimetre precision.
- Multiple core tissue samples (for histology) or vacuum-assisted samples (particularly for microcalcifications) are collected.
- A small titanium marker clip is often placed at the biopsy site to identify it on future imaging if needed.
- A sterile dressing is applied and the patient can return to normal activities the same day; results are communicated within 3–5 days.
