Case Report: An 82-year-old patient underwent a mastectomy and axillary lymph node clearance for a large multicentric lobular cancer of the left breast. On day 11 after her operation, white viscous fluid was noted in her axillary drain. Methods: We analysed case reports in the literature, noting the interval between surgery and diagnosis of chyle, the duration of the chyle leak, the volume of chyle during the first 24 h, the median volume and the administered treatment. Results: 25 cases were reported in 13 publications. Our case was unusual in that chyle was noted 11 days after surgery. In most cases, chyle leakage subsides spontaneously by simply leaving the drain in situ. Conclusions: A conservative observant approach appears appropriate in most cases. Only for persistent and large-volume leaks, dietary intervention (medium-chain lipid diet, nil by mouth, total parenteral nutrition) is justified. Surgery with re-exploration of the axilla and oversewing of the chyle duct can be used as the last reserve for persistent chyle leaks.

Ultrasonographically-guided core biopsy has been used as an adjunct to triple assessment when fine-needle aspiration cytology was inadequate or equivocal, if the overall assessment of the patient was uncertain, or if it was deemed the preferred diagnostic option. Some 143 of 2603 patients had a guided core biopsy, 125 to establish the diagnosis and 18 to obtain histology in cytologically proven malignancy. A diagnosis of malignancy was established in 43 of the 125 patients who had a diagnostic core biopsy. Some 45 patients with benign disease were either discharged or returned to follow-up on the basis of the core biopsy. The remaining 37 patients required surgical biopsy, of whom 13 had malignant and 24 benign disease. The overall positive predictive value for malignancy was 98 per cent. Experience with ultrasonographically-guided core biopsy shows that it can reduce the need for surgical biopsy in both benign and malignant conditions of the breast.

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The diagnosis and surgical treatment of carcinoma of the common hepatic duct present diffucult problems. Accurate preoperative localization of the obstructive lesion is essential and slim needle transhepatic percutaneous cholangiography is the investigation of choice. Worth while palliation may be achieved if biliary-enteric flow can be reestablished by introducing a plastic stenton through the obstructive lesion in the bile duct. Three patients are reviewed who survive 36, 31 and 26 months after this operation. A further patient died of metastases after 5 months.

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