Cryoablation and Fibroadenomas

NinjaPixie

Hello!

My name is Rue, and  I have some questions for you- I'm 27, wear a size 34 B in bra, and recently was diagnosed with having a Fibroadenoma in my right breast. I suppose I should begin this. though, by giving an over view of the past few months- In January of this year I found a then pea sized lump in the 9 o'clock region of my right breast, and, rather than wait until my yearly well-woman exam, decided to bring it to my OBGYN's attention early. I went in, she performed a breast exam, confirmed that the lump was palpable and needed further investigation. She then sent me in for a mammogram and ultrasound, and, a week later, I was told that the condition was a cyst. I went into my GP to have his confirmation of the results (he emphatically stated that it was "more than likely" just fibrocystic breast tissue and not to be worried), but in May I noticed that the lump had not gone away, and, in fact, had become larger. I also noticed a large section of my right breast (in the 12 o'clock position) was overtly firm, and a small patch (about the size of a pinky finger nail) was an odd color/texture. I again went in to see my OBGYN who again confirmed the lump and I AGAIN went in for ultrasound and mammograpy. This time the radiologist noted that the original lump (I've come to call it "Fred" just to save space) had gotten notably larger. My OBGYN sent me in to a breast surgeon who then did a biopsy of "Fred," and I got the results in yesterday- it is a Fibroadenoma; again, "nothing to worry about."

My Surgeon is leery of preforming surgery to remove Fred, and instead wants to do Cryoablasion. I know that this option removes the increase of scar tissue dramatically and can make future mammograms easier, but, my question is this- I have heard from numerous sources that false negatives do exist and that on rare occasion, Fibroadenomas can mask underlying breast cancer- Is cryoablasion the best option, or should I opt for surgery? If I do opt for cryoablasion and it has turned out to be a false negative, will this interfere with my doctors ability to correctly diagnose it? Or will it "dissolve" the cancerous lump and leave little to detect, thus leaving me in the lurch and eventually catching it when its too late to catch? I'm unsure as to how to approach the subject and if this is something I should be worried about. Also- my surgeon noted that the firmer portion of my breast with the skin change was "just thick tissue" and we "may" take a look at it after the cryoablasion. Should I be worried? Or should I go through with what's been planned?

Any advice would be welcome.

Thank you!
Rue

WolfsLady

None of the doctors I've seen recommend removing Fibroadenomas unless they become large enough to be a problem in some way.  They just monitor them to see if they are growing or changing shape.  In that case they might do another core biopsy or elect to remove them.  

Everything I've read says that the risk of a Fibroadenoma hiding or becoming cancer is extremely low.  Once the size stabilizes I was told they would follow up every 6 months for 2 years and then once a year as long as it remains that way.  I'm on 6 month check ups because of family history anyway.  I've read that they can come and go and sometimes resolve on their own.  I elected not to have mine removed.  But only after doing enough research that I felt comfortable with that decision.  I was a bit freaked because when I went to have mine biopsied, in the month between then and when it was found I suddenly had a 2nd one just a short distance away.    So far both have remained stable and we are past 18 months.  My breasts moved on to other busy benign things.  

I haven't heard of doing Cryoablasion on them.  Maybe someone else will know more about that.  

leaf

IIRC, I think Dr. Susan Love mentioned it in an earlier copy of her book (Circa 2005?). 

Here is an abstract of 21 ultrasound guided cryoablation of breast fibroadenomas

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23143883

This paper opines it probably causes less scarring than surgical removal, and is a preferred choice for those that refuse surgery.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16174156

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15450823