Ayman Refaat1, Ahmed EL-Marakby, Ahmed Farghaly2, Hossam ELShamaa3, Mohamed Ibrahim4, Mohamed Hamed Salem5
Ahmed Gamal Eldin Fouad¹, Ahmed Faraghaly¹, Ahmed Elmarakby¹, Fatma Zeinhom²
1Amr Saleh El Bahaey, 2Ahmed Balboula
Fouad S. Fouad1 and Abdelrahman Mohamed2
1Mohamed Salama, 1Heba G.M. Mahmoud, 2Marwa Nabil, 1Mohamed Hassan
1Hebatallah G.M. Mahmoud, 1Mohamed Salama, 1John Wahib, 2Salem Eid, 1Omaya Nassar
Wael Ahmed Ghanem, Ahmed Bassiouny Radwan
Wael Ghanem
Sherif M. Mokhtar1 , Shady Elghazaly Harb1 , Hossam Hussein2 ,Shady Nabil Mashhour3
Shady Elghazaly Harb, Sherif M. Mokhtar, Sameh Mikhail
Osama G. Fahmy, Osama A. Radwan & Mohamed I. Monier
Ayman El Samadoni, Haitham A. Eldmarany and Amr El Bahaey
Salah M. Raslan MD and Hany M. Elbarbary MD, FRCS, FACS
Ayman El Samadoni1 , Haitham A.Eldmarany2
Hamdy A. Elhady
Hassan A. Abdallah1, Abd-El-Aal A. Saleem1, Osama A. AbdulRaheem1, Mohamed Yousef A2
Maged Rihan, MD, MRCS Mohamed M.Raslan ,MD
Mohamed Abd El-Monem Abd El-Salam Rizk, MD
Sherif Essam Tawfik MD, Mohamed Abd El-Monem Abd El-Salam Rizk MD, Abd elrahman Mohamed MD
Wael A Jumuah, MD; Yasser El Ghamrini, MD; Karim Sabry Abdel Samee, MD, MRCS (Ed)
Ahmed Sayed1,2, Hussein Elwan1 , Mostafa Elshal2, Ahmed Taha1,2
Margins in Breast Conserving Surgery: Could We Have Alternatives
Background: For patients with breast cancer, a negative surgical margin at first breast conserving surgery
(BCS) minimizes the need for reoperation and likely reduces postoperative anxiety. We assessed margin
status after BCS in early-stage breast cancer. Aim of work: This study was conducted to evaluate the selfreported practice patterns and perceptions of obtaining free surgical margins in BCS in our university
hospital. It is about alternatives of assessment of safe margins (gross, microscopic) and how safe it is not to
depend entirely on frozen section intraoperatively, through studying the rate of wider margins after both
ways. Methods: A prospective, randomized study (card picking by the patient under supervision of the
ward nurse) of 103 female patients underwent breast-conserving surgery (BCS) with and without frozen
section- 49 and 54 patients respectively - for assessment of margins intraoperatively were studied at
General Surgery Department, kasr Alainy University hospital, Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University in a
period of 21 months duration starting from January 1st, 2015 till October 31st, 2016. Results: Thirty eight
patients out of total 54 (70.4%), who were randomized not to undergo frozen section for margins
evaluation, were deemed to have clear margins on gross assessment and did not undergo re-excision for
residual tumor which is confirmed on subsequent microscopic examination (paraffin section).While 16
females of the same group (29.6%) were found to have compromised margin(s) necessitating a second
operation based on microscopic examination (paraffin section).On the other hand, ten patients out of 49
(20.4%), who were randomized to undergo frozen section for margins evaluation, underwent re-excision in
order to have adequate safe margins in cases subjected to frozen section assessment of margins
intraoperatively. Conclusion: Intraoperative gross assessment of margins depending on the type of
margins excision is an effective technique to obtain safe margins in BCS with rates of re-excision near to
cases subjected to frozen section for margins assessment intraoperatively. This is particularly useful in
situations where frozen section technique is not available or represents added cost.
Key words: breast conserving surgery, safe margins, gross assessment, frozen section.