Tubular carcinoma

Tubular carcinoma is a subtype of invasive ductal carcinoma of the breast. More rarely, tubular carcinomas may arise in the pancreas or kidney. Most tubular carcinomas begin in the milk duct of the breast and spread to healthy tissue around it.

Pathology
Although tubular carcinoma has been considered a special-type tumor, recent trend has been to classify it as a low-grade, invasive NOS carcinoma because there is a continuous spectrum from pure tubular carcinomas to mixed NOS carcinomas with tubular features, depending on the percentage of the lesion that displays tubular features.

Histology
Tubular carcinomas are generally around 1 cm. or smaller, and are made up of tubules. They are usually low-grade. Elastosis has been noted as common but is not present in all cases.

Prevalence
Prevalence has previously been controversial, with contradictory reports from studies reporting either very low prevalence, or a high prevalence. With the increasing availability of screening mammography, however, tubular carcinomas are being diagnosed earlier, and more recent studies suggest tubular carcinomas represent between 8% and 27% of all breast cancers.

Prognosis
Tubular carcinoma is one of the histologic types of breast cancer with a more favorable outcome.

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