Routine Use of a Standardized Mastectomy Diagram by Surgeons Improves Accuracy and Timeliness of the Final Pathological Report

BACKGROUND: Accurate and timely assessment of pathology specimens is critical for patient care and oncologic management. This study aimed to determine whether a standardized mastectomy diagram would facilitate communication among surgeons and pathologists and improve pathologic processing. METHODS: A prospective quality improvement study was conducted over a continuous 12-month period. During the first 6 months, usual pathologic processing of mastectomy specimens was performed per standard department protocol. In the second 6 months, a standardized mastectomy diagram was completed at the time of surgery, noting the location and preoperative pathologic diagnosis of all benign and malignant lesions. An analysis of covariance was used to compare the number of breast lesions identified and the number of days between specimen receipt and the date of the final pathology report between each group. RESULTS: Time from specimen receipt to final pathologic report decreased from a mean (± SE) of 8.3 ± 0.7 days in the usual processing group to 6.1 ± 0.6 days with the use of the standardized mastectomy diagram, for a between-group difference of 2.1 days (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.3–4.0; p = 0.02). The number of lesions identified increased from 1.8 ± 0.2 to 2.6 ± 0.2, for a between-group difference of 0.8 (95% CI 0.1–1.5; p = 0.02). CONCLUSION: A standardized mastectomy diagram completed at the time of surgery improves the quality of pathologic processing. The diagram, which serves as a mastectomy lesion map, assists lesion localization, enhances accuracy, and reduces time to final pathology report.