Frequency and Predictors of Axillary Lymph Node Metastases in Iranian Women with Early Breast Cancer

Background: Axillary lymph node metastasis is the most important predictive factor for recurrence risk andsurvival in patients with invasive breast carcinoma. The aim of this study was to determine factors associated withmetastatic involvement of axillary lymph nodes in Iranian women with early breast cancer. Methods: This article reportsa retrospective study of 774 patients with T1-T2 breast cancer who underwent resection of the primary tumor and axillarystaging by SLNB and/or ALND between 2005 and 2015 at our institution. Results: Of the 774 patients included in thisstudy, 35.5% (275 cases) had axillary lymph node involvement at the time of diagnosis. Factors associated with nodalinvolvement in univariate analyses were tumor size, lymphovascular invasion (LVI), tumor grade, ER/PR status andHER2 expression. All factors identified with univariate analyses were entered into a multivariate logistic regressionmodel and tumor size (OR= 3.01, CI 2.01–4.49, P <0.001), ER/PR positivity (OR = 1.74, CI 1.1.16–2.62, P = 0.007)and presence of LVI (OR = 3.3.8, CI 2.31–4.95, P <0.001) remained as independent predictors of axillary lymph nodeinvolvement .Conclusions: In conclusion, the results of this study suggests that positive hormonal receptor status, LVIand tumor size are predictive factors for ALNM in Iranian women with early breast cancer.