Cost analysis of re-excisions for breast conserving surgery in Central Texas.

e11534 Background: Defining “adequate” margins has long been a source of controversy. Recently, the Society of Surgical Oncology (SSO) & American Society of Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) published a joint consensus statement, recommending “no tumor on ink” as the definition of an adequate margin in both invasive & non-invasive breast cancer. Prior to this definition, approximately 20% of women treated with lumpectomy had to undergo re-excision to attain more clear margins. Re-excisions increase the risk of surgical complications, patient stress, delay in adjuvant therapies, & increase medical costs. The goal of this study was to evaluate the cost of re-excisions in Central Texas. Methods: Billing codes were obtained for patients with early stage breast cancer and ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) who underwent re-excision after either biopsy or lumpectomy from 2008 to the present at our institution. Those that underwent needle localization biopsy followed by re-excision were excluded. A total of 58 patients (1...