OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the use of color Doppler ultrasound in the detection of vascularity of solid breast cancer and to correlate patterns of vascular distribution with size, stage and histopathological findings. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixty-six breast carcinomas were studied using color Doppler ultrasound. Morphological and fluxometric characteristics were evaluated before performing the biopsy, and its correlations with clinical and histopathological aspects and tumor staging were assessed statistically. RESULTS: Penetrating vessels were seen in 52 (79%) of the cases, peripheral vessels in 63 (95%), central vessels in 33 (50%) and no flow was detected in two cases (3%). The average number of vessels in the breast tumor was 11.9 ± 7.7 and in the contralateral breast was 1.7 ± 2.5. No association was evident between the scan results and the histological features assessed. The distribution of vessels was different in the two groups of tumors. No difference was seen between tumor and normal breast regarding diastolic velocity, resistance and pulsatility index. The mean systolic velocity was 11.74 ± 0.96 in breast tumor and 9.45 ± 0.55 in normal breast. The number of vessels increased with the progression of tumor staging. CONCLUSION: The pattern of the vessels in breast cancer seen on ultrasound should be considered as a potentially important feature in the preoperative evaluation of breast masses with other prognostic factors like the tumor size or disease staging.

Keywords: Breast neoplasm, Breast neoplasm, Breast neoplasm