Changes in utilization of axillary dissection in women with invasive breast cancer and sentinel node metastasis after the ACOSOG Z0011 trial

The American College of Surgeons Oncology Group Z0011 (ACOSOG Z0011) trial demonstrated no survival advantage for women with clinical T1–T2 invasive breast cancer with 1–2 positive sentinel lymph nodes (SLN) who received whole-breast radiation, and no further axillary surgery when compared to women who did undergo axillary lymph node dissection (ALND). We used the National Cancer Database (NCDB) to study changes in utilization of ALND after the publication of this trial. NCDB was queried for female patients from 2012 to 2015 who met Z0011 criteria. Patients were divided into four groups based on Commission on Cancer facility accreditation. Outcome measures include the rate of ALND (nonadherence to Z0011) and the average number of nodes retrieved with ALND. 27,635 patients were identified, with no significant differences in T stage and receptor profiles between groups. Overall rate of ALND decreased from 34.0% in 2012 to 22.7% in 2015. Nonadherence was lowest in Academic Programs (decreasing from 30.1% in 2012 to 20.5% in 2015) and was highest in Community Cancer Programs (41.2% in 2012 to 29.1% in 2015). Median number of positive SLN did not differ between groups (p = .563). Median number of nodes retrieved on ALND decreased from 9 (IQR 5–14) in 2012 to 7 (IQR 4–12) in 2015 (p < .001). In patients who met the ACOSOG Z11 trial guidelines, rates of ALND have decreased over time. However, rates of nonadherence to Z0011 are significantly higher in Community Cancer Programs compared to Academic Programs.     

Feasibility and surgical impact of Z0011 trial criteria in a single‐Institution practice

The purpose of this study is the evaluation of clinical and surgical impact of the Z0011 trial criteria on the management of breast cancer (BC) patients undergoing breast conservative surgery (BCS) at the European Institute of Oncology (IEO). We studied 1386 patients who underwent BCS and sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) from July 2016 to July 2018. Clinical evaluation, breast ultrasound, mammogram, and cyto/histological examination were performed for all patients at the time of diagnosis. Frozen sections of the sentinel lymph node (SLN) were not performed for any patient. Patients who underwent neo‐adjuvant therapy were excluded. To evaluate the results before and after the introduction of Z0011 criteria, a group of 1425 patients with the same characteristics who underwent BCS and SLNB from July 2013 to July 2015 were analyzed. We studied the characteristics of the patients by nodal status, and we observed that T stage, tumor grade, and lymphovascular invasion were statistically related with the highest rate of positive SLN. Of the 1386 patients who underwent surgery after the introduction of the Z011 trial, 1156 patients (83.4%) had negative SLN, 230 patients (16.6%) had positive SLN. Subsequent axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) was performed in only 7 cases (3.0%). Of the 1425 patients operated before the introduction of the Z0011 trial, 216 patients had subsequent ALND (15%). The reduction in the number of ALND performed after the introduction of Z0011 is statistically significant, and this could result in a remarkable reduction of the comorbidities of our patients.     

Intraoperative palpation of sentinel lymph nodes can accurately predict axilla in early breast cancer

Recent randomized trials have shown that completion axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) is not required in all patients with a positive sentinel lymph node (SLN) who will receive radiation therapy. Although routine intraoperative pathologic assessment (IPA) becomes unnecessary and less indicated by breast surgeons in the United States and some European countries, it is still widely used all around the world. In this prospective study, the feasibility of intraoperative nodal palpation (INP) as opposed to IPA of the SLN has been analyzed. Between March 2014 and June 2015, 305 patients with clinical T1‐2/N0 breast cancer from two different breast clinics (cohort A; [n = 225] and cohort B; [n = 80]) who underwent any breast surgery with sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) were included in this study. Surgeons evaluated the SLNs by manual palpation before sending for IPA, and findings compared with the final pathology. The positive predictive values (PPV) of INP and IPA were 81.8% and 97.9%, respectively, whereas the negative predictive values (NPV) of INP and IPA were 83% and 92.4%. The accuracies of INP and IPA were 82.6% and 94.1%, respectively. If patients with SLNB including micrometastasis were also considered in the final pathologic assessment (FPA) (?) group that would not require a further axillary dissection, the revised NPV of INP and FPA were found to be 92.6% and 98.1%, respectively. The revised accuracy of INP also found to be increase to 86.9%. Our study, which is the only prospective one about palpation of dissected SLNs in the literature, suggests that INP can help to identify patients who do not need ALND, which encourages omitting IPA in cT1‐2 N0 breast cancer.     

腋窝淋巴结清扫术治疗前哨淋巴结活检阴性乳腺癌的系统评价

目的系统评价腋窝淋巴结清扫术治疗前哨淋巴结活检阴性乳腺癌的有效性和安全性。方法检索CNKI、PubMed、EMBASE、CBM从建库至2013年12月1日的文献资料,选择腋窝淋巴结清扫术和前哨淋巴结活检术治疗乳腺癌患者的试验,严格按照制订纳入和排除标准对纳入的研究进行筛选、资料提取、质量评价和结果分析。使用Revman 5.1软件,进行统计学分析(Meta-分析)。结果最终纳入10篇文献,患者共7731例。因纳入文献在研究类型、测量指标、随访时间以及统计学指标的差异较大,采用亚组分析,Meta分析同质研究,其余采用定性的描述性分析。本研究结果显示,在无病生存率、总体生存率、局部复发率、远处转移率方面,不同随访时间腋窝淋巴结清扫术与前哨淋巴结切除术间差异均无统计学意义。结论对于单发浸润性乳腺癌患者前哨淋巴结活检呈阴性时,可不必行腋窝淋巴结清扫术。目前尚需相关高质量随机对照试验和长期的随访进一步证实此系统评价的结论。     

美蓝染色法检测乳腺癌前哨淋巴结的临床研究

目的 寻找检测乳腺癌前哨淋巴结(SLN)方法，研究前哨淋巴结活检(SLNB)预测腋窝淋巴结状况的准确性。方法 对40例乳腺癌患者行美蓝染色法检测SLN，并行腋窝淋巴结清扫术(ALND)后，将腋窝淋巴结转移状况与SLN进行对比分析，分析SLN检出率及临床特征。结果 40例患者中成功检测出SLN35例，成功率为87．5％。检出SLN60个，平均每例检出SLNl．7个。2例出现假阴性，假阴性率为10.5％，无假阳性。35例患者中有16例SLN阳性，阳性率为45.7％。SLNB预测腋窝淋巴结(ALN)的敏感性为88．8％，特异性为100％，准确性为94．4％。结论 美蓝染色法检测乳腺癌SLN经济实用，可以较准确地预测腋窝淋巴结的转移状况。     

Effect of the American College of Surgeons Oncology Group Z0011 trial on axillary management in breast cancer patients in the Australian setting

The American College of Surgeons Oncology Group Z0011 Trial demonstrated that early breast cancer patients with positive axillary sentinel lymph nodes treated with breast‐conserving surgery and breast radiotherapy had no additional oncologic benefit of proceeding to an axillary lymph node dissection (ALND). The extent to which practice has changed in Australia remains unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of the Z0011 trial on the management of positive axillary sentinel nodes at an Australian institutional level. We reviewed all breast cancer cases treated at the Sydney Adventist Hospital over a 10‐year period from 1 January 2008 to 31 December 2017. Patients who fulfilled the Z0011 trial criteria were selected. These patients were divided into two groups according to the year of surgery, before and after 1 January 2011 when the Z0011 study was published. Clinicopathologic data and axillary surgical management were compared. Of the 237 patients fulfilling the Z0011 trial criteria, there were 73 patients before and 158 patients after 1 January 2011. In the earlier group the rate of proceeding to an ALND following a positive sentinel node was 78.1% compared to 43.7% in the latter group (P < 0.0001). There was a significant decline in the rate of ALND over this 10‐year period (r = ?0.79, P = 0.006). The Z0011 trial has influenced the surgical management of the axilla leading to a significant reduction in the rate of an ALND in patients fulfilling the Z0011 trial criteria at our institution.     

Clinicopathologic analysis of sentinel lymph node mapping in early breast cancer

Axillary nodal status is the most significant prognosticator for predicting survival and guiding adjuvant therapy in breast cancer patients. Sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) represents a minimally invasive procedure with low morbidity for staging axillary nodal status. In this article we review and report our experiences in patients with early breast cancer who underwent SLNB at the Revlon/UCLA Breast Center. Between September 1998 and May 2000, a total 83 SLNBs were performed in 81 patients with proven breast cancer and negative axillary examination who elected to have SLNB as the first step of nodal staging. Two patients had bilateral breast cancer. SLNB was localized by using both 99Tc sulfur colloid (83 cases) and isosulfan blue dye (75 cases). Data of these patients were prospectively collected and analyzed. The clinical and pathologic characteristics of women with positive and negative sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs) were compared to identify features predictive of SLN metastasis. Of the 83 cases, the SLN was successfully localized in 82 (98.8%). Sixty-three percent of patients had SLNs found in level I only, 18.3% in both level I and II, and 4.9% in level II alone. The vast majority (84.3%) of these cases had T1 breast cancer with an average size of 1.55 cm for the entire series. Twenty-three patients (28%) had positive SLNs, with an average of 1.5 positive SLNs per patient. Fifteen had metastases detected by hematoxylin and eosin staining and 8 had micrometastases detected by immunohistochemistry (IHC) using anticytokeratin antibodies. Ten of the former group agreed to and 2 of the latter group opted for full axillary lymph node dissection (ALND). An average of 17.5 lymph nodes were removed from each ALND procedure. Additional metastases or micrometastases were found in seven patients (in a total of 28 lymph nodes). Three patients with completely negative SLNs experienced additional axillary lymph node removal due to their election of free flap reconstruction. None had metastases detected in these lymph nodes. The absence of estrogen and progesterone receptors (ER/PR) by IHC (p = 0.036) and the presence of lymphatic/vascular invasion (LVI) (p = 0.002) predicted positive SLNs in patients with early breast cancer in a univariate analysis; in a multivariate analysis only LVI was predictive (p = 0.0125). Histologic type, nuclear grade, tumor differentiation, HER-2/neu and p53 status, S-phase fraction, and DNA ploidy did not predict SLN status. Immediate postoperative complications were uncommon and delayed complications completely absent. Because of the high detection rate, accurate staging, and minimal morbidity, SLNB should be offered as a choice to women with small breast cancers and clinically negative nodes. Because positive LVI and negative ER/PR status are highly predictive of pathologically positive SLNs in small breast cancers, women whose cancers meet these criteria should be advised preoperatively about their risk of having a positive SLN and may benefit from intraoperative assessment (frozen section and/or touch preparation) of their SLNs.     

Axillary staging using positron emission tomography in breast cancer patients qualifying for sentinel lymph node biopsy

Axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) is the standard of care for nodal staging of patients with invasive breast cancer. Due to significant somatic and psychological side effects, replacement of ALND with less invasive techniques is desirable. The goal of this study was to evaluate the clinical usefulness of axillary lymph node (ALN) staging by means of positron emission tomography (PET) with 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) in breast cancer patients qualifying for sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB). FDG-PET was performed within 1 week before surgery in 24 clinically node-negative breast cancer patients with tumors smaller than 3 cm. Sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs) were identified by preoperative lymphoscintigraphy following peritumoral technetium 99m-labeled colloid albumin injection, and by intraoperative gamma detector and blue dye localization. Following SLNB, a standard ALND was performed. Serial sectioning and immunohistochemistry of the SLN as well as standard histologic examination of the non-SLN was performed. FDG-PET detected all primary breast cancers. Staging of ALNs by PET was accurate in 15 of 24 patients (62.5%), whereas PET staging was false negative in 8 of 10 node-positive patients and false-positive in 1 patient. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of FDG-PET for nodal status was 20%, 93%, 67%, and 62%, respectively. The mean diameter of false-negative ALN metastases was 7.5 mm (range 1-15 mm). Lymph node staging using FDG-PET is not accurate enough in clinically node-negative patients with breast cancer qualifying for SLNB and should not be used for this purpose.     

乳腺癌行腋窝淋巴结清扫规范、争议与共识

乳腺癌的有效治疗方法很多,但外科手术是公认的乳腺癌治疗的基础。手术成功与否的最根本标志是肿瘤手术区域的局部控制。腋窝淋巴结受累的程度是预测乳腺癌术后复发和生存,指导进一步个体化治疗的最为重要指标。规范的腋窝淋巴结清扫和病理检查对乳腺癌的治疗至关重要。术前判断存在腋窝淋巴结转移的乳腺癌病人,腋窝淋巴结清扫是乳腺癌手术的规范和要求。术前临床诊断无腋窝淋巴结转移（cN0）的早期乳腺癌病人,如果前哨淋巴结活检阴性可不做进一步的腋窝淋巴结清扫也已成为共识。对于前哨淋巴结1或2枚阳性的乳腺癌病人可以不行腋窝淋巴结的清扫的观点仍然存在争论。     

Imprint cytology versus frozen section: intraoperative analysis of sentinel lymph nodes in breast cancer

Background: Intraoperative analysis of the sentinel node status in breast cancer adds the benefit of proceeding to axillary dissection at the same time as the primary breast operation, without the need for a second trip to theatre. However, the method of intra­operative analysis must be both rapid and accurate for use in this setting. Methods: A prospective series of 20 consecutive patients in one hospital who underwent sentinel node biopsy was performed. Intraoperative evaluation by imprint cytology and frozen section was compared with the final histopathological results. The time taken for both procedures was recorded. Results: A total of 21 sentinel node procedures was performed. The sentinel node was found in 20 procedures (95%). The average time to perform intraoperative pathological analysis was 17 min (range: 5?35 min). Of the eight positive sentinel nodes, five were positive on imprint cytology alone and five were positive on frozen section alone (62.5% accuracy). The statistical false negative rate was 18.8% and the ‘false reassurance rate’ (patients with an initially negative node that was subsequently positive on formal histology who required a second trip to theatre for axillary dissection) was 37.5%. All patients with a negative sentinel node had a negative axilla. Conclusions: Intraoperative analysis of sentinel lymph nodes in breast cancer can be performed quickly. Imprint cytology and frozen section show comparable accuracy in predicting sentinel node status.     

Failure to harvest sentinel lymph nodes identified by preoperative lymphoscintigraphy in breast cancer patients

Abstract: Selective sentinel lymphadenectomy dissection has been demonstrated to have high predictive value for axillary staging in breast cancer patients. Preoperative lymphoscintigraphy can localize and facilitate the harvesting of sentinel lymph nodes (SNLs) with a high success rate. The failure rate of selective sentinel lymphodenectomy ranges between 2% and 8%. Details of the failures were seldom addressed. This study analyzes the causes of failure to harvest SLNs in spite of positive preoperative lymphoscintigraphy. From November 1997 through November 2000, 201 female patients with histologically confirmed and operable breast carcinoma underwent selective sentinel lymphadenectomy at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) Carol Franc Buck Breast Care Center. Among these patients, 183 (91%) received preoperative lymphoscintigraphy to identify axillary lymph nodes. The causes of failure to harvest the SLNs in this group of patients despite successful preoperative lymphoscintigraphy were analyzed. In our series, the failure rate of SLN identification was 7.0% (14/201). The failure rate for our first year was 11.1% (6/54), second year 9.1% (7/77), and third year 1.4% (1/70). The incidence of failure in spite of positive preoperative lymphoscintigraphy was 3.5% (6/170). The shine-through effect of the primary injection site and failure to visualize a blue lymph node were the main reasons for technical failure. Most of these cases occurred during our learning curve of the procedure. The possibility of failure to get the SLN should be explained to patients before surgery. Axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) should be done if selective SLN dissection is not successful.      

Failure of sentinel lymph node mapping in breast cancer patients qualified for treatment sparing axillary lymph nodes—Clinical importance and management strategy—One‐center analysis

Sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) is a standard in diagnostic and therapeutic management of patients with nonadvanced invasive breast cancer. The aim of this paper was to evaluate the clinical importance of the failure of sentinel lymph node (SLN) identification during SLNB performed to spare axillary lymph nodes. A total of 5396 patients with invasive breast cancer qualified for SLNB, treated in a period from Jan 2004 to June 2018. All cases of the failure of SLN identification and reasons underlying this situation were analyzed retrospectively. In 196 (3.6%) patients, SLN was not identified (group I), and this resulted in a simultaneous axillary lymph node dissection. 48.5% patients from this group were diagnosed with cancer metastases to lymph nodes (vs 23.6% patients with SLN removed—group II, P < .00001)—stage pN1 in 44.2% of the cases, stage pN2 in 22.1% of the cases, and pN3 in 33.7% (in group II—73.4%, 19.5% and 7.1%, respectively), with a presence of extracapsular infiltration in 68.4% patients (vs 41.7% in group II) and with a significantly higher percentage of micrometastatic nature in group II (17.0%, vs 3.2% in group I). The failure of intraoperative sentinel lymph node mapping indicates a significantly increased risk of breast cancer metastases to the axillary lymph system. At the same time, it can also indicate higher cancer stage and its increased aggressiveness. For this reason, in such situation performance of axillary lymph node dissection still appears to be the approach most advantageous for patients.     

乙酰脱氢酶1在乳腺癌前哨淋巴结中的表达及临床意义

目的 探讨乙醛脱氢酶1(ALDH1)在乳腺癌前哨淋巴结中的表达及其临床意义。方法收集2021年05月至2022年05月在茂名市人民医院行乳腺癌手术患者的临床资料,釆用免疫组织化学染色法检测乳腺癌转移的前哨淋巴结（n=26）和未转移的前哨淋巴结（n=29）中ALDH1的表达情况,分析前哨淋巴结中ALDH1的表达情况与原发灶临床病理特征及预后指标之间的关系。结果 乳腺癌转移前哨淋巴结和未转移前哨淋巴结中ALDH1阳性表达率分别为76.9%(20/26)、17.2%(5/29),转移前哨淋巴结中ALDH1阳性表达率显著高于未转移前哨淋巴结（P<0.01）。将乳腺癌前哨淋巴结中ALDH1的表达情况与原发灶的组织学分级、临床分期、肿瘤直径、雌激素受体、孕激素受体、人类表皮生长因子受体2、Ki-67的表达情况及分子分型进行差异性分析,显示均无统计学意义（P>0.05）,但与患者的年龄有关（P<0.05）;将ALDH1的表达情况与腋窝淋巴结转移情况以及与术后病理明确性质的前哨淋巴结的准确性进行差异性分析,显示具有统计学意义（P<0.01）。结论 乳腺癌前哨淋巴结中ALDH1表...     

Reoperative sentinel lymph node biopsy in patients with locally recurrent breast cancer

BACKGROUND: Sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) is considered a standard of care in the staging of breast cancer. The objective was to examine our experience with reoperative SLNB. METHODS: We identified 19 patients in our breast cancer database who had a SLNB in the reoperative setting. All 19 patients had undergone previous breast-conserving surgery with either an axillary lymph node dissection or an SLNB. The reoperative sentinel lymph node (SLN) was identified using blue dye, radioisotope, or both. RESULTS: The SLN was identified in 84% of the reoperative cases. Of these successful cases, both blue dye and radioisotope were used in five cases, and radioisotope alone was used in 11 cases. Radioisotope identified the SLN in the 100% of successful SLNB cases (P = .0003). There were 3 unsuccessful cases in which blue dye and radioisotope failed to identify the sentinel node. CONCLUSIONS: Reoperative SLNB after previous axillary surgery is technically feasible.     

1～2枚前哨淋巴结阳性乳腺癌患者中非前哨淋巴结转移的影响因素分析

目的分析1~2枚前哨淋巴结(SLN)阳性乳腺癌患者的临床病理因素与非前哨淋巴结(nSLN)转移的关系。方法回顾性分析2012年1月至2015年12月期间广州医科大学附属第二医院乳腺外科1~2枚SLN阳性且同时行腋窝淋巴结清扫的118例早期浸润性乳腺癌患者临床病理资料,分别应用x~2检验及Logistic回归进行单因素及多因素分析。结果 nSLN未转移(nSLN-)组患者64例,nSLN转移(nSLN+)组患者54例。单因素分析显示nSLN转移与肿瘤大小、脉管癌栓、SLN转移比例有关(P=0.001,P=0.030,P=0.002),但与年龄、绝经状态、病理类型、肿瘤位置、核分级、SLN转移数目、ER、PR、C-erBb-2、Ki67无关(均P0.05)。多因素分析显示肿瘤大小、脉管癌栓、SLN转移比例均为nSLN转移的独立影响因素(OR分别为3.159,2.425,2.258,均P0.05)。结论肿瘤大小≥2 cm、脉管癌栓、SLN转移比例≥2、3均为1~2枚SLN阳性乳腺癌患者nSLN转移的独立不良影响因素。     

应用亚甲蓝行乳腺癌前哨淋巴结活检276例分析

目的 探讨以亚甲蓝作为示踪剂行乳腺癌前哨淋巴结(SLN)活检的临床应用及影响因素.方法 分析了276例临床T1-T2 N0-M0乳腺癌患者前哨淋巴结活检(SLNB)结果,对SLN检出率及假阴性率影响因素进行了初步分析.结果 276例患者中,成功检出SLN者246例(检出率为89.1%).共检出SLN 423枚,每例1～4枚.前哨淋巴结对腋窝淋巴结转移情况预测的敏感性为77.3%(68/88),假阴性率为8.1%(20/246),假阳性率为0,准确率为91.9%(226/246).临床T2N0M0SLNB成功率高于临床T1N0M0乳腺癌患者(P=0.046);年龄<50岁者SLNB检出成功率高于年龄≥50岁病例(P=0.000),SLNB假阴性率年龄<50岁者显著低于高龄患者(P=0.037);外上象限和外下象限肿瘤SLNB检出成功率明显高于其他象限(P=0.000).内上象限肿瘤SLNB假阴性率高于外上及外下象限(P=0.018).临床TMN分期、EB、PR表达情况及病理类型对SLNB成功率及假阴性率无影响.结论 以亚甲蓝作为示踪剂行乳腺癌SLNB,患者年龄、临床TNM分期、肿瘤部位对SLN检出率有一定影响,患者年龄、肿瘤部位可影响SLNB假阴性率.     

早期乳腺癌前哨淋巴结活检手术中示踪方法的临床应用研究

目的对比分析核素联合亚甲蓝与亚甲蓝单示踪法在早期乳腺癌前哨淋巴结活检术中应用效果。方法收集我院385例行前哨淋巴结活检术的乳腺癌患者的临床资料,其中109例由高年资医生应用亚甲蓝单示踪法,276例由高年资和低年资两组医生应用核素联合亚甲蓝示踪法,对比分析行联合示踪法与单示踪法前哨淋巴结活检结果的差异。并分析不同年资手术医生在联合示踪法前哨淋巴结活检结果的差异。结果联合示踪法与亚甲蓝单示踪法在前哨淋巴结活检的检出率、假阴性率、准确率、灵敏率无统计学意义(P>0.05),在联合示踪法下,高年资手术医生与低年资手术医生的前哨淋巴结活检的检出率、假阴性率、准确率无显著差异(P>0.05)。结论高年资外科医生使用亚甲蓝单示踪法行前哨淋巴结活检,是安全可靠又经济的方法。联合示踪法有助于帮助年轻的乳腺外科医生快速掌握熟悉前哨淋巴结活检技术。     

早期乳腺癌前哨淋巴结活检手术中示踪方法的临床应用研究

目的对比分析核素联合亚甲蓝与亚甲蓝单示踪法在早期乳腺癌前哨淋巴结活检术中应用效果。方法收集我院385例行前哨淋巴结活检术的乳腺癌患者的临床资料,其中109例由高年资医生应用亚甲蓝单示踪法,276例由高年资和低年资两组医生应用核素联合亚甲蓝示踪法,对比分析行联合示踪法与单示踪法前哨淋巴结活检结果的差异。并分析不同年资手术医生在联合示踪法前哨淋巴结活检结果的差异。结果联合示踪法与亚甲蓝单示踪法在前哨淋巴结活检的检出率、假阴性率、准确率、灵敏率无统计学意义(P>0.05),在联合示踪法下,高年资手术医生与低年资手术医生的前哨淋巴结活检的检出率、假阴性率、准确率无显著差异(P>0.05)。结论高年资外科医生使用亚甲蓝单示踪法行前哨淋巴结活检,是安全可靠又经济的方法。联合示踪法有助于帮助年轻的乳腺外科医生快速掌握熟悉前哨淋巴结活检技术。     

Intraoperative cytologic diagnosis of breast sentinel lymph nodes in the routine, nonacademic setting: a highly specific test with limited sensitivity

Intraoperative determination of metastatic breast carcinoma in sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs) by cytologic methods has been proposed as highly specific and sensitive. Much of these data are derived from academic institutes with highly trained personnel and without axillary dissection occurring as a direct result of the intraoperative interpretation. This prospective study was undertaken to assess the sensitivity and specificity of cytology in the routine, private-practice, intraoperative setting. A total of 207 SLNs from 96 breast carcinoma patients were evaluated by intraoperative cytologic preparations by general surgical pathologists; positive results led to axillary lymphadenectomy. Ten nodes were positive by intraoperative cytology (IC). Permanent section analysis confirmed the presence of carcinoma in the IC-positive cases and documented carcinoma in 19 of the IC-negative cases. IC sensitivity and specificity were 34% and 100%, respectively. False-negative IC interpretations occurred in nodes with occult micrometastases (12 of 19 nodes) and lobular carcinoma (6 of 19 nodes). Only one of eight grossly positive sentinel nodes resulted in a false-negative IC. While near-perfect specificity and high sensitivity can be achieved with grossly positive sentinel nodes by IC, sensitivity is quite low in cases with micrometastatic and lobular carcinoma.