©The Author(s) 2026. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Oncol. Feb 24, 2026; 17(2): 115245
Published online Feb 24, 2026. doi: 10.5306/wjco.v17.i2.115245
Published online Feb 24, 2026. doi: 10.5306/wjco.v17.i2.115245
Palpable vs non-palpable breast cancers in screened populations: Clinicopathological features and prognostic implications
Luca Improta, Gianluca Stanzani, Valeria Vitale, Marco Yusef, Augusto Lombardi, Breast Unit, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Sant’Andrea, Rome 00189, Lazio, Italy
Simone Tinghino, Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, “Sapienza” University of Rome, Rome 00185, Lazio, Italy
Augusto Lombardi, Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences and Translational Medicine, “Sapienza” University of Rome, Rome 00185, Lazio, Italy
Author contributions: Improta L finalized the manuscript editing; Improta L, Tinghino S and Lombardi A conducted the statistical analyses; Improta L and Lombardi A prepared the figures and drafted the manuscript; Stanzani G, Vitale V, and Yusef M performed data quality control and contributed to manuscript review; Tinghino S and Lombardi A conceived the study and collected the data; all of the authors read and approved the final version of the manuscript to be published.
Institutional review board statement: This study was reviewed and approved by the local Institutional Review Board of the Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Sant’Andrea of Rome.
Informed consent statement: All participants provided informed consent.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
STROBE statement: The authors have read the STROBE Statement – checklist of items, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the STROBE Statement – checklist of items.
Data sharing statement: All relevant data are within the paper. Raw data are available from the authors upon request.
Corresponding author: Luca Improta, MD, PhD, Breast Unit, Azienda Ospedaliero-Univer
Received: October 15, 2025
Revised: November 11, 2025
Accepted: December 25, 2025
Published online: February 24, 2026
Processing time: 117 Days and 13.5 Hours
Revised: November 11, 2025
Accepted: December 25, 2025
Published online: February 24, 2026
Processing time: 117 Days and 13.5 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: Despite widespread mammographic screening, many breast cancers still present as palpable masses. This large cohort study (n = 2110) reveals that palpable tumors exhibit aggressive biology-larger size (17.5 mm vs 11.0 mm, P < 0.001), higher grade (G3) (33% vs 16%), elevated Ki-67 (24.7% vs 15.1%), and more frequent luminal B/TN subtypes (P < 0.001). While 10-year survival remained excellent (> 90%) for both groups, palpability served as a clinical marker of rapid tumor growth, underscoring its utility in risk stratification. Findings highlight that even in screened populations, palpable presentation may signal biologically aggressive disease warranting tailored management.