Hidetomo Morizono

Ductal carcinoma in situ and sentinel lymph node metastasis in breast cancer

BackgroundThe impact of sentinel lymph node biopsy on breast cancer mimicking ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is a matter of debate.MethodsWe studied the rate of occurrence of sentinel lymph node metastasis in 255 breast cancer patients with pure DCIS showing no invasive components on routine pathological examination. We compared this to the rate of occurrence in 177 patients with predominant intraductal-component (IDC) breast cancers containing invasive foci equal to or less than 0.5 cm in size.ResultsMost of the clinical and pathological baseline characteristics were the same between the two groups. However, peritumoral lymphatic permeation occurred less often in the pure DCIS group than in the IDC-predominant invasive-lesion group (1.2% vs. 6.8%, p = 0.002). One patient (0.39%) with pure DCIS had two sentinel lymph nodes positive for metastasis. This rate was significantly lower than that in patients with IDC-predominant invasive lesions (6.2%; p < 0.001).ConclusionsBecause the rate of sentinel lymph node metastasis in pure DCIS is very low, sentinel lymph node biopsy can safely be omitted.

Influence of Lymphatic Invasion on Locoregional Recurrence Following Mastectomy: Indication for Postmastectomy Radiotherapy for Breast Cancer Patients With One to Three Positive Nodes

PURPOSE The indication for postmastectomy radiotherapy (PMRT) in breast cancer patients with one to three positive lymph nodes has been in discussion. The purpose of this study was to identify patient groups for whom PMRT may be indicated, focusing on varied locoregional recurrence rates depending on lymphatic invasion (ly) status. METHODS AND MATERIALS Retrospective analysis of 1,994 node-positive patients who had undergone mastectomy without postoperative radiotherapy between January 1990 and December 2000 at our hospital was performed. Patient groups for whom PMRT should be indicated were assessed using statistical tests based on the relationship between locoregional recurrence rate and ly status. RESULTS Multivariate analysis showed that the ly status affected the locoregional recurrence rate to as great a degree as the number of positive lymph nodes (p < 0.001). Especially for patients with one to three positive nodes, extensive ly was a more significant factor than stage T3 in the TNM staging system for locoregional recurrence (p < 0.001 vs. p = 0.295). CONCLUSION Among postmastectomy patients with one to three positive lymph nodes, patients with extensive ly seem to require local therapy regimens similar to those used for patients with four or more positive nodes and also seem to require consideration of the use of PMRT.

Skin invasion and prognosis in node negative breast cancer: a retrospective study

BackgroundThe impact of skin invasion in node negative breast cancer is uncertain.MethodsWe determined the prognosis in 97 node negative breast cancer patients (case group) who had tumors with skin invasion. Then we compared these patients with 4500 node negative invasive breast cancer patients treated surgically in the same period.ResultsPatients with skin invasion tended to be older, had more invasive lobular carcinoma and larger tumor size, and were less likely to have breast conserving surgery than those in the control group. The 5-year disease-free survival rate in the case group was 94.0%. There was no significant difference in the 10-year disease-specific overall survival rates in terms of skin invasion in node negative patients (90.7% in the case group, 92.9% in the control group; p = 0.2032).ConclusionResults suggest that skin invasion has no impact on survival in node negative invasive breast cancer patients. The adjuvant regimens which the individual institute applies for node negative breast cancer should be used regardless of skin invasion.

Four types of Ipsilateral Breast Tumor Recurrence (IBTR) after breast-conserving surgery: Classification of IBTR based on precise pathological examination

We classified ipsilateral breast tumor recurrences (IBTRs) based on strict pathological rules. Ninety‐six women who were surgically treated for IBTR were included. IBTRs were classified according to their origins and were distinguished based on strict pathological rules: relationship between the IBTR and the primary lumpectomy scar, surgical margin status of the primary cancer, and the presence of in situ lesions of IBTR. The prognosis of these subgroups were compared to that of new primary tumors (NP) in the narrow sense (NPn) that occurred far from the scar. Distant‐disease free survival of IBTR that occurred close to the scar with in situ lesions and a negative surgical margin of the primary cancer (NP occurred close to the scar, NPcs) was similar to that of NPn. In contrast, IBTR that occurred close to the scar without in situ lesions (true recurrence (TR) that arose from residual invasive carcinoma foci, TRinv) had significantly poorer prognosis than NPn. IBTR that occurred close to the scar with in situ lesions and a positive surgical margin of the primary cancer (TR arising from a residual in situ lesion, TRis) had more late recurrences than NPcs. Precise pathological examinations indicated four distinct IBTR subtypes with different characteristics.

Non-sentinel lymph node analysis with one-step nucleic acid amplification in breast cancer patients

BACKGROUND One-step nucleic acid amplification (OSNA) examines lymph node metastasis in a semiquantitative manner with molecular biology techniques. In this study, we conducted a whole-node analysis of non-sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs) using the OSNA method in SLN metastasis-positive breast cancer patients. METHODS With the OSNA method, we compared the rates of positivity of non-SLN metastasis in cases with both SLN micro- and macrometastases. RESULTS The rates of non-SLN metastasis positivity in those with SLN micrometastasis and macrometastasis were 44% and 48%, respectively, and this difference was not significant. When the study of non-SLN metastasis positivity was focused only on macrometastases, the rates of non-SLN metastasis positivity in patients with SLN micrometastasis and macrometastasis were 19% and 22%, respectively, and there was no significant difference. CONCLUSION Regardless of the copy number of SLN metastases, non-SLN metastases were found in approximately half of the cases.

Surgical excision without whole breast irradiation for complete resection of ductal carcinoma in situ identified using strict, unified criteria

BACKGROUND The definition of complete resection of ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is difficult to standardize because of the high variety of surgical breast conserving procedures, specimen handling, and pathological examinations. Using strictly controlled criteria in a single institute, the present study aimed to determine the ipsilateral breast cancer rate when radiotherapy is omitted following complete resection of DCIS. METHODS We retrospectively examined 363 consecutive DCIS patients who underwent breast-conserving surgery, and of these, 125 (34.4%) had complete resection according to the criteria. We finally included 103 patients who omitted radiotherapy. Ipsilateral and contralateral breast cancer events were assessed. RESULTS The median follow-up period was 118 months. The incidences of ipsilateral and contralateral breast cancer and ipsilateral invasive breast cancer at 10 years were 10.8%, 9.1%, and 3.6%, respectively. No patient died of breast cancer. CONCLUSION If complete resection of DCIS can be ensured, the annual incidence of ipsilateral breast cancer, even without irradiation, can be limited to approximately 1%, which equals the incidence of contralateral breast cancer.

Clear Cell Sarcoma of the Neck Which Metastasized to the Mammary Gland

Malignant neoplasms very rarely metastasize to the mammary gland, the incidence of which is reported as 0.5–2%. Clear cell sarcoma is a rare neoplasm, accounting for approximately 1% of all soft tissue tumors, which commonly occurs in the distal extremities of young adults aged approximately 20 to 40 years. So it is also called malignant melanoma of soft parts because it frequently produces melanin. We report a case of a 26-year-old woman who presented with a neck mass. The mass was surgically removed, and pathological diagnosis was clear cell sarcoma of the neck, harboring the EWS-ATF1 chimeric gene. Computed tomography detected a right breast mass 11 months after operation. She was referred to our department, and the right breast tumor was resected. Histopathological examination revealed a 2.5-cm, well-defined mass composed of nests of small, spindle-shaped tumor cells with abundant, clear cytoplasm containing round nuclei and prominent nucleoli. The tumor cells were immunohistochemically positive for HMB45, S-100, and Melan-A. These findings led to a diagnosis of metastasis of clear cell sarcoma to the mammary gland. This is the first report of clear cell sarcoma of the neck which metastasized to the mammary gland.

A Case of Recurrent Breast Cancer Identified by Pulmonary Tumor Thrombotic Microangiopathy

Pulmonary tumor thrombotic microangiopathy (PTTM) is a rare, cancer-related, pulmonary complication that causes hypoxia and pulmonary hypertension. We report on a 42-year-old woman who was diagnosed with recurrent breast cancer that was detected due to the presence of PTTM. Eleven months after surgery for heterochronous bilateral cancer of the left breast, she developed progressive dyspnea but computerized tomography showed no pulmonary thromboembolism, and a transthoracic echocardiography revealed mild pulmonary hypertension. She was diagnosed with PTTM by cytology from pulmonary artery catheterization and perfusion lung scintigraphy. Also, the patients complained of back pain after admission, bone scintigraphy showed multiple bone metastases. Despite the early diagnosis of PTTM, her platelet count decreased, her performance status rapidly deteriorated, and her dyspnea worsened. Thus, we could not treat her with chemotherapy. She died due to respiratory failure 19 days after admission. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of recurrent breast cancer identified by the manifestation of PTTM. Although PTTM is a rare phenomenon, it should be considered in the differential diagnosis of acute dyspnea or pulmonary hypertension in patients with breast cancer. Furthermore, upon diagnosis, the patient should be referred to a cardiologist as soon as possible.