HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS REGISTER		Author Keyword(s) Vol Page [Advanced]

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Submit a response Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this link to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Add article to my folders Download to citation manager Request Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Fleming, F J Articles by Hill, A D K Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Fleming, F J Articles by Hill, A D K

Factors affecting metastases to non-sentinel lymph nodes in breast cancer

Departments of Surgery and Pathology, St Vincent’s University Hospital and Conway Institute of Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, University College Dublin, Ireland

Correspondence to:
Mr A D K Hill
St Vincent’s University Hospital, Elm Park, Dublin 4, Ireland; adkhill{at}ucd.ie Aims: Because sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy for breast cancer has become well established, one of the challenges now is to determine which patients require a completion axillary dissection following a positive SLN biopsy.

Methods: A prospective database of patients who underwent SLN biopsy for invasive breast cancer from July 1999 to November 2002 (n = 180) was analysed. Fifty four patients (30%) had one or more positive SLN, and all underwent a completion axillary dissection. This subgroup was further analysed to delineate which factors predicted non-SLN metastasis.

Results: Twenty six of the 54 patients with a positive SLN had additional metastases in non-SLNs. Significant variables that predicted non-SLN metastasis included extranodal extension (odds ratio (OR), 17.399; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.69 to 178.96) and macrometastasis within the SLN (OR, 6.985; 95% CI, 1.291 to 37.785).

Conclusions: In patients with invasive breast cancer and a positive SLN, extranodal extension or macrometastasis within the SLN were both independent predictors of non-SLN involvement.

Keywords: metastasis; breast cancer; sentinel node

Abbreviations: ALND, axillary lymph node dissection; H&E, haematoxylin and eosin; LVI, lymphovascular invasion; SLN, sentinel lymph node

This article has been cited by other articles:

				J. Cho, W. Han, J. W. Lee, E. Ko, S. Y. Kang, S.-Y. Jung, E.-K. Kim, W. K. Moon, N. Cho, I.-A. Park, et al. A Scoring System to Predict Nonsentinel Lymph Node Status in Breast Cancer Patients with Metastatic Sentinel Lymph Nodes: A Comparison with Other Scoring Systems Ann. Surg. Oncol., August 1, 2008; 15(8): 2278 - 2286. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				M. L. Smidt, L. J. A. Strobbe, H. M. M. Groenewoud, G. J. der Wilt, K. J. Van Zee, and T. Wobbes Can Surgical Oncologists Reliably Predict the Likelihood for Non-SLN Metastases in Breast Cancer Patients? Ann. Surg. Oncol., February 1, 2007; 14(2): 615 - 620. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				G. Houvenaeghel, C. Nos, H. Mignotte, J. M. Classe, S. Giard, P. Rouanet, F. P. Lorca, J. Jacquemier, and V. J. Bardou Micrometastases in Sentinel Lymph Node in a Multicentric Study: Predictive Factors of Nonsentinel Lymph Node Involvement--Groupe Des Chirurgiens De La Federation Des Centres De Lutte Contre Le Cancer J. Clin. Oncol., April 20, 2006; 24(12): 1814 - 1822. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]