Axillary lymph node and non-sentinel lymph node metastasis among the ACOSOG Z0011 eligible breast cancer patients with invasive ductal, invasive lobular, or other histological special types: a multi-institutional retrospective analysis

Correlation between sentinel lymph node biopsy and non-sentinel lymph node metastasis in patients with cN0 breast carcinoma: comparison of invasive ductal carcinoma and invasive lobular carcinoma

BACKGROUND

Some studies have suggested that axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) can be avoided in women with cN0 breast cancer with 1-2 positive sentinel nodes (SLNs). However, these studies included only a few patients with invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC), so the validity of omitting ALDN in these patients remains controversial. This study compared the frequency of non-sentinel lymph nodes (non-SLNs) metastases in ILC and invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC).

MATERIALS METHODS

Data relating to a total of 2583 patients with infiltrating breast carcinoma operated at our institution between 2012 and 2023 were retrospectively analyzed: 2242 (86.8%) with IDC and 341 (13.2%) with ILC. We compared the incidence of metastasis to SLNs and non-SLNs between the ILC and IDC cohorts and examined factors that influenced non-SLNs metastasis.

RESULTS

SLN biopsies were performed in 315 patients with ILC and 2018 patients with IDC. Metastases to the SLNs were found in 78/315 (24.8%) patients with ILC and in 460 (22.8%) patients with IDC (p = 0.31). The incidence of metastases to non-SLNs was significantly higher (p = 0.02) in ILC (52/78-66.7%) compared to IDC (207/460 - 45%). Multivariate analysis showed that ILC was the most influential predictive factor in predicting the presence of metastasis to non-SLNs.

CONCLUSIONS

ILC cases have more non-SLNs metastases than IDC cases in SLN-positive patients. The ILC is essential for predicting non-SLN positivity in macro-metastases in the SLN. The option of omitting ALND in patients with ILC with 1-2 positive SLNs still requires further investigation.

Update on Sentinel Lymph Node Methods and Pathology in Breast Cancer

Breast cancer stands out as the most commonly diagnosed cancer among women globally. Precise lymph node staging holds critical significance for both predicting outcomes in early-stage disease and formulating effective treatment strategies to control regional disease progression in breast cancer patients. No imaging technique possesses sufficient accuracy to identify lymph node metastases in the early stages (I or II) of primary breast cancer. However, the sentinel node procedure emerges as a valuable approach for identifying metastatic axillary nodes. The sentinel lymph node is the hypothetical first lymph node or group of nodes draining a cancer. In case of established cancerous dissemination, it is postulated that the sentinel lymph nodes are the target organs primarily reached by metastasizing cancer cells from the tumor. The utilization of the sentinel node technique has brought about changes in the assessment of lymph nodes. It involves evaluating the sentinel node during surgery, enabling prompt lymph node dissection when the sentinel node procedure is positive. Additionally, histological ultra-stratification is employed to uncover occult metastases. This review aims to provide an update of this valuable technique, with focus on the practical aspects of the procedure and the different histological protocols of sentinel node evaluation in breast cancer.

Lymphovascular invasion is a significant risk factor for non-sentinel nodal metastasis in breast cancer patients with sentinel lymph node (SLN)-positive breast cancer: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

A connection between lymphovascular invasion and axillary lymph node metastases in breast cancer has been observed, but the findings are inconsistent and primarily based on research in Western populations. We investigated the association between lymphovascular invasion and non-sentinel lymph node (non-SLN) metastasis in breast cancer patients with sentinel lymph node (SLN) metastasis in western China.

METHODS

This study comprised 280 breast cancer patients who tested positive for SLN through biopsy and subsequently underwent axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) at The People's Hospital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region between March 2013 and July 2022. We used multivariate logistic regression analyses to assess the association between clinicopathological characteristics and non-SLN metastasis. Additionally, we conducted further stratified analysis.

RESULTS

Among the 280 patients with positive SLN, only 126 (45%) exhibited non-SLN metastasis. Multivariate logistic regression demonstrated that lymphovascular invasion was an independent risk factor for non-SLN in breast cancer patients with SLN metastasis (OR = 6.11; 95% CI, 3.62-10.32, p < 0.05). The stratified analysis yielded similar results.

CONCLUSIONS

In individuals with invasive breast cancer and 1-2 positive sentinel lymph nodes, lymphovascular invasion is the sole risk factor for non-SLN metastases. This finding aids surgeons and oncologists in devising a plan for local axillary treatment, preventing both over- and undertreatment.

Axillary lymph node status and invasive lobular breast cancer : Analysis of the Clinical Tumor Register of the AGO Austria

BACKGROUND

Invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC) represents the second most common type of invasive breast cancer (BC). Although ILC generally have good prognostic properties (positive estrogen receptor, ER, low tumor grade), they are generally diagnosed at a more advanced stage. The data on the axillary lymph node status in ILC compared to invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC) are considered controversial. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare the pathological node stage (pN) between ILC and IDC in an Austria-wide register.

METHODS

Data of the Clinical Tumor Register (Klinisches TumorRegister, KTR) of the Austrian Association for Gynecological Oncology (AGO) were retrospectively analyzed. Patients with primary early BC, invasive lobular or ductal, diagnosed between January 2014 and December 2018, and primary surgery were included. A total of 2127 tumors were evaluated and compared in 2 groups, ILC n = 303, IDC n = 1824.

RESULTS

A total of 2095 patients were analyzed in the study. In the multivariate analysis, pN2 and pN3 were observed significantly more frequently in ILC compared with IDC (odds ratio, OR 1.93; 95% confidence interval, CI 1.19-3.14; p = 0.008 and OR 3.22; 95% CI: 1.47-7.03; p = 0.003; respectively). Other factors associated with ILC were tumor grades 2 and 3, positive ER, and pathological tumor stage (pT) 2 and pT3. In contrast, concomitant ductal carcinoma in situ, overexpression of the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), and a moderate and high proliferation rate (Ki67) were found less frequently in ILC.

CONCLUSION

The data show an increased risk of extensive axillary lymph node metastasis (pN2/3) in ILC.

Evaluation of adjuvant therapy for T1-2N1miM0 breast cancer without further axillary lymph node dissection

Background

For breast cancer (BC) with sentinel lymph node micrometastases (SLNMs), there are limited data to guide the selection of postoperative adjuvant therapy. This study aimed to identify target populations who might benefit most from adjuvant therapy and examine prognostic factors among patients with T1-2N1miM0 BC with one or two SLNMs who underwent sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) alone.

Methods

There were 7,423 patients diagnosed with T1-2N1miM0 BC between 2010 and 2015, and patients with one or two SLNMs were extracted from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database. All the patients underwent SLNB alone without further axillary lymph node dissection, and they were stratified according to adjuvant therapy. The statistical significance of categorical variables was analyzed using the χ ² test. Univariable and multivariable Cox analyses were used to analyze characteristics predictive of Breast-cancer-specific survival and overall survival (OS). Kaplan-Meier methods with the log-rank test was analyzed to compare survival difference between the different treatments.

Results

Adjuvant chemotherapy and radiotherapy improved 5-year OS rates. Multivariate analysis revealed that age ≥70 years, high grade, T2 stage, triple-negative subtype, and absence of radiotherapy were poor prognostic factors for OS. Patients who received breast-conserving surgery (BCS), and those with invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC), luminal A, luminal B, or basal-like subtype, and T1c or T2 stage benefited from adjuvant radiotherapy. Patients who received BCS, and those with IDC, luminal A subtype, and T1b, T1c, or T2 stage benefited from adjuvant chemotherapy.

Conclusion

Our findings provide a clinical evaluation of treatment choice after surgery, which may help clinicians make individualized clinical decisions.

Axilla lymph node dissection can be safely omitted in patients with 1-2 positive sentinel nodes receiving mastectomy: a large multi-institutional study and a systemic meta-analysis

PURPOSE

This study aimed to evaluate whether axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) can be omitted in patients with 1-2 positive sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs) who received total mastectomy (TM).

METHODS

Consecutive breast cancer patients with 1-2 positive SLNs were retrospectively reviewed from a multi-institutional database. Patients were divided into sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) group and ALND group. Administration of adjuvant chemotherapy and survival were compared between groups. To further verify the results, a meta-analysis was also conducted.

RESULTS

Among the 1161 enrolled patients, 893 (76.9%) received ALND and 268 (23.1%) underwent SLNB alone. Administration of chemotherapy was comparable between the two groups (91.1% vs. 90.6%, P = 0.798), which was consistent in TM (P = 0.638) and BCS cohort (P = 0.576). After a median follow-up of 36 months, no significant difference was observed between the two groups in recurrence-free survival (P = 0.583) regardless of surgery of breast. During further meta-analysis, 13 out of 4733 relative studies reported the association of axillary surgery and disease-free survival (DFS) or overall survival (OS) in 1-2 positive SLNs patients. Pooled analysis showed no difference in adjusted DFS (HR 0.84, 95% CI 0.70-1.02) or OS (HR 1.02, 95% CI 0.93-1.11) between SLNB and ALND groups. Survival benefit of ALND remained non-significant after restricting the analysis in four studies with patients only receiving BCS, or in three studies with patients only receiving TM.

CONCLUSION

Further ALND does not impact adjuvant chemotherapy administration or disease outcome in breast cancer patients with 1-2 positive SLNs treated with TM.

Update on sentinel node pathology in breast cancer

Pathologic examination of the sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs) in patients with breast cancer has been impacted by the publication of practicing changing trials over the last decade. With evidence from the ACOSOG Z0011 trial to suggest that there is no significant benefit to axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) in early-stage breast cancer patients with up to 2 positive SLNs, the rate of ALND, and in turn, intraoperative evaluation of SLNs has significantly decreased. It is of limited clinical significance to pursue multiple levels and cytokeratin immunohistochemistry to detect occult small metastases, such as isolated tumor cells and micrometastases, in this setting. Patients treated with neoadjuvant therapy, who represent a population with more extensive disease and aggressive tumor biology, were not included in Z0011 and similar trials, and thus, the evidence cannot be extrapolated to them. Recent trials have supported the safety and accuracy of sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) in these patients when clinically node negative at the time of surgery. ALND remains the standard of care for any amount of residual disease in the SLNs and intraoperative evaluation of SLNs is still of value for real time surgical decision making. Given the potential prognostic significance of residual small metastases in treated lymph nodes, as well as the decreased false negative rate with the use of cytokeratin immunohistochemistry (IHC), it may be reasonable to maintain a low threshold for the use of cytokeratin IHC in post-neoadjuvant cases. Further recommendations for patients treated with neoadjuvant therapy await outcomes data from ongoing clinical trials. This review will provide an evidence-based discussion of best practices in SLN evaluation.

Analysis of sentinel lymph node biopsy and non-sentinel lymph node metastasis in invasive ductal and invasive lobular breast cancer: a nationwide cross-sectional study (CSBrS-001)

Background

Information regarding the implementation of sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) in invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC) is scarce, and whether ILC patients with 1–2 positive sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs) can be omitted from axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) remains controversial. This study aimed to compare involvement of SLNs and non-SLNs between patients with invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC) and ILC.

Methods

We retrospectively collected the clinical and pathological data of invasive breast cancer patients from 37 medical centers in China from January 2018 to December 2018. The number of resected SLNs, positive rate of SLNs, and non-SLNs metastasis were compared between patients with IDC and ILC.

Results

A total of 6,922 patients were included, comprising 6,650 with IDC (96.1%) and 272 with ILC (3.9%). No difference was observed in the number of resected SLNs between patients with IDC and ILC (IDC: 4.0±1.9 vs. ILC: 3.9±1.6, P=0.352). The positive rate of SLNs was significantly higher in patients with IDC than that in patients with ILC (19.3% in IDC vs. 12.9% in ILC, P=0.008). The difference in positive rate of SLNs between IDC and ILC was mainly attributed to macro-metastasis. For patients with positive SLNs who received ALND, and those with 1–2 positive SLNs, the metastatic rate of non-SLNs in the ILC group was higher than that in the IDC group (for patients with positive SLNs: 50.0% in ILC vs. 39.9% in IDC, P=0.317; for patients with 1–2 positive SLNs: 45.4% in ILC vs. 34.8% in IDC, P=0.366), but the differences were not statistically significant.

Conclusions

Patients with ILC had similar number of resected SLNs and lower positive rate of SLNs compared to those with IDC. In participants with 1–2 positive SLNs, the ILC group had an increased tendency for non-SLNs metastasis compared with the IDC group. Surgeons may need to be more cautious about omitting ALND for ILC patients with 1–2 positive SLNs.

Comparison of two different surgical strategies for breast cancer patients treated with mastectomy plus sentinel lymph node biopsy

Two separated incisions are generally adopted in breast cancer patients treated by mastectomy plus sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB). However, one-incision procedure is also applied in clinical practice. The outcomes of the two different surgical strategies remain unknown. This issue needs to be investigated. The medical records of breast cancer patients who underwent a mastectomy combined with an SLNB were reviewed retrospectively. Group A comprised patients who received a single incision for both the mastectomy and SLNB. Group B comprised patients who received a second incision for the SLNB. Demographics and outcomes were compared between the two groups. There were 280 female patients divided into Groups A (n = 130) and B (n = 150) included in this study. Preoperatively, the two groups were similar in demographics for age, tumor size, tumor location, body mass index, pathologic type, and cancer stage (P > 0.05). Group A showed shorter surgical times (129.5 ± 29.0 vs. 136.7 ± 21.9 min), less postoperative upper limb numbness (12.3% vs. 25.3%), and more harvested sentinel lymph nodes (3.2 ± 1.1 vs. 2.7 ± 1.0) than Group B (P < 0.05). There were no significant differences for intraoperative blood loss, total postoperative drainage amount, hospital stay, upper limb motility, upper limb pain, upper limb edema, number of metastatic sentinel lymph nodes, follow-up time, or recurrent cases (P > 0.05). The one-incision approach for a breast cancer mastectomy plus SLNB has several advantages over the two-incision approach, including a shorter surgical time, decreased upper limb numbness, and the harvesting of more sentinel lymph nodes. Further prospective randomized controlled clinical trials should be designed to verify the current findings.