A wide local excision (WLE) is a

surgical Surgery ''cheirourgikē'' (composed of χείρ, "hand", and ἔργον, "work"), via la, chirurgiae, meaning "hand work". is a medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a person to investigate or treat a pat ...

procedure to remove a small area of diseased or problematic tissue with a margin of normal tissue. This procedure is commonly performed on the breast and to skin lesions, but can be used on any area of the body. The tissue removed is examined under a microscope to confirm the type of lesion and to grade malignant

tumour A neoplasm () is a type of abnormal and excessive growth of tissue. The process that occurs to form or produce a neoplasm is called neoplasia. The growth of a neoplasm is uncoordinated with that of the normal surrounding tissue, and persists ...

s. This examination also determines if all of the lesion has been removed without leaving any behind. The results of a WLE will determine any future treatments if needed.

Wide local excision of the breast

A wide local excision of the

breast The breast is one of two prominences located on the upper ventral region of a primate's torso. Both females and males develop breasts from the same embryological tissues. In females, it serves as the mammary gland, which produces and sec ...

aims to remove benign and malignant lesions while conserving the normal shape of the breast as much as possible. It is a form of

breast-conserving surgery Breast-conserving surgery (BCS) refers to an operation that aims to remove breast cancer while avoiding a mastectomy. Different forms of this operation include: lumpectomy (tylectomy), wide local excision, segmental resection, and quadrantectom ...

. A WLE can only be used for lesions up to 4 cm in diameter, as removal of any larger lesions could leave a visibly dented area in the breast. The extent of excision is variable, ranging from

lumpectomy Lumpectomy (sometimes known as a tylectomy, partial mastectomy, breast segmental resection or breast wide local excision) is a surgical removal of a discrete portion or "lump" of breast tissue, usually in the treatment of a malignant tumor or brea ...

quadrantectomy A quadrantectomy, also referred to as a segmental or partial mastectomy, is a breast-conserving surgery for breast cancer in which one quarter of breast tissue is removed along with muscles of the chest wall within a 2 to 3 centimeter radius of a ...

. A larger excision would be categorised as a

mastectomy Mastectomy is the medical term for the surgical removal of one or both breasts, partially or completely. A mastectomy is usually carried out to treat breast cancer. In some cases, women believed to be at high risk of breast cancer have the operat ...

instead.Wide Local Excision
Livestrong.com. Accessed April 11, 2012.

References

{{reflist Surgical removal procedures Breast cancer Breast surgery