MR Guided Focused Ultrasound Surgery in the Treatment of Breast Fibroadenomas

Many patients are now diagnosed with breast fibroadenomas. These are generally detected during breast self-exams, or annual physicals as a smooth, rubbery, oval/elliptical lump in the breast. These patients then go on to receive mammograms, sonograms and usually a core biopsy for the differential diagnosis of benign disease (fibroadenoma) vs breast cancer. Although fibroadenomas are benign, they can be of great concern to the patient because of their ability to mask the presence of other lumps in the breast, they can be painful, cause a physical deformity of the breast or have other symptoms. The current treatment is surgical excision. Surgical removal is invasive and may be cosmetically undesirable to some patients. It would be advantageous to develop a non-invasive ablative method for treatment of this disease. Measures of the clinical success of patients who elect surgical removal of fibroadenomas are generally subjective, and evaluated primarily by the patient (lack of palpable lesion, pain free, and an acceptable cosmetic result). A non-randomized study is proposed to allow for a more practical approach in subject recruitment. Analysis on safety and efficacy will be performed through the use of MRI evaluation and physical exams.