Enhanced axillary assessment using intradermally injected microbubbles and contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) before neoadjuvant systemic therapy (NACT) identifies axillary disease missed by conventional B-mode ultrasound that may be clinically relevant.

Autor: Cox, Karina, Dineen, Nicky, Taylor-Phillips, Sian, Sharma, Nisha, Harper-Wynne, Catherine, Allen, Deborah, Weeks, Jennifer, Chalmers, Ritchie, Akolekar, Deepika, Burcombe, Russell, Jyothirmayi, Rema, Sever, Ali
Zdroj: Breast Cancer Research & Treatment; Jan2021, Vol. 185 Issue 2, p413-422, 10p
Abstrakt: Purpose: The purpose of this study is to measure pre-treatment diagnostic yield of malignant lymph nodes (LN) using contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) in addition to B-mode axillary ultrasound and compare clinicopathological features, response to NACT and long-term outcomes of patients with malignant LN detected with B-mode ultrasound versus CEUS. Methods: Between August 2009 and October 2016, NACT patients were identified from a prospective database. Follow-up data were collected until May 2019. Results: 288 consecutive NACT patients were identified; 77 were excluded, 110 had malignant LN identified by B-mode ultrasound (Group A) and 101 patients with negative B-mode axillary ultrasound had CEUS with biopsy of sentinel lymph nodes (SLN). In two cases CEUS failed. Malignant SLN were identified in 35/99 (35%) of B-mode ultrasound-negative cases (Group B). Patients in Group A were similar to those in Group B in age, mean diagnostic tumour size, grade and oestrogen receptor status. More Group A patients had a ductal phenotype. In the breast, 34 (31%) Group A patients and 8 (23%) Group B patients achieved a pathological complete response (PCR). In the axilla, 41 (37%) and 13 (37%) Groups A and B patients, respectively, had LN PCR. The systemic relapse rate was not statistically different (5% and 16% for Groups A and B, respectively). Conclusions: Enhanced assessment with CEUS before NACT identifies patients with axillary metastases missed by conventional B-mode ultrasound. Without CEUS, 22 (63%) of cases in Group B (negative B-mode ultrasound) may have been erroneously classed as progressive disease by surgical SLN excision after NACT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Databáze: Complementary Index