Abstract 3260: Utilizing digital pathology to understand breast epithelial characteristics of benign breast disease among women undergoing diagnostic image-guided breast biopsy
Authors: Mullooly Maeve , Puvanesarajah Samantha , Fan Shaoqi , Pfeiffer Ruth M. , Olsson Linnea , Hada Manila , Kirk Erin L. , Vacek Pamela M. , Weaver Donald L. , Shepherd John A. , Mahmoudzadeh Amir P. , Wang Jeff , Hewitt Stephen M. , Herschorn Sally D. , Sherman Mark E. , Troester Melissa A. , Gierach Gretchen L. 
Published: August 2018

Introduction: Defining the histologic correlates of mammographic breast density (MD) may provide insights into why elevated MD is related to increased breast cancer risk. Studies suggest that reduced terminal ductal lobular (TDLU) involution is associated with elevated MD, and both are independent breast cancer risk factors among women who have undergone a biopsy for benign breast disease (BBD). Prior digital histologic analyses of normal breast tissues revealed epithelial nuclear density (END) and TDLU involution are correlated. Accordingly, we examined associations of END with TDLU involution and MD in clinical biopsies. Methods: We analyzed 262 image-guided breast biopsies diagnosed as BBD from 224 women. TDLU involution was visually assessed as TDLU count/mm2 and TDLU span (inversely related to level of involution) in background normal tissue, evaluated using digitized images. The Genie Classifier (Aperio) was applied to images to estimate nuclei count per unit epithelial area, (END). Single X-ray Absorptiometry of pre-biopsy craniocaudal digital mammograms was applied to measure global MD (percent fibroglandular volume (%FGV)). Analysis of covariance, adjusted for age and body mass index, examined mean END differences across tertiles of TDLU/MD measures. Analyses were conducted at the biopsy level using SAS PROC GENMOD to account for within-woman correlations. All tests were two-tailed. Results: Overall, 67% of BBD biopsies were proliferative. Higher END was observed among proliferative than non-proliferative BBD (median END: 10,187 vs. 9,953 respectively; p=0.04). Among all women, END significantly increased with increasing tertiles of TDLU measures (p-trends: TDLU count/100mm2=0.0001, TDLU span=0.046). Whereas TDLU metrics were positively associated with %FGV, no relationship was observed between END and %FGV. In analyses stratified by BBD severity, however, END and %FGV were positively associated among women with non-proliferative disease (p-trend=0.04), findings not observed with proliferative disease. Conclusions: Automated END and visually assessed TDLU involution metrics were positively associated with each other and with MD. However, associations were diluted for proliferative lesions, suggesting that applying automated digital pathology tools to unsegmented digital images of whole sections of BBD biopsies does not demonstrate the same associations with MD as visual assessment of TDLU involution.

Citation Format: Maeve Mullooly, Samantha Puvanesarajah, Shaoqi Fan, Ruth M. Pfeiffer, Linnea Olsson, Manila Hada, Erin L. Kirk, Pamela M. Vacek, Donald L. Weaver, John A. Shepherd, Amir P. Mahmoudzadeh, Jeff Wang, Stephen M. Hewitt, Sally D. Herschorn, Mark E. Sherman, Melissa A. Troester, Gretchen L. Gierach. Utilizing digital pathology to understand breast epithelial characteristics of benign breast disease among women undergoing diagnostic image-guided breast biopsy [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2018; 2018 Apr 14-18; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2018;78(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 3260.