[Neoadjuvant treatment of breast cancer: implications for the pathologist]. / Place du pathologiste dans la prise en charge néoadjuvante des cancers du sein.

These past few years, neoadjuvant strategy has taken an increasing place in the management of breast cancer patients. This strategy is mainly indicated to obtain a tumour bulk regression allowing a breast conserving surgery in patients that otherwise would have undergone mastectomy. Of note, development of new chemotherapy agents and targeted therapies has critically helped in the progress of neoadjuvant strategy as it is currently associated with better pathological response rates. In this context, the pathologist is at the crossroad of this multidisciplinary process. First, he provides on the initial core needle biopsy the tumour pathological characteristics that are critical for the choice of treatment strategy, i.e. histological type, histological grade, proliferative activity (mitotic count and Ki67/MIB1 index labeling), hormone receptor status (oestrogen receptor and progesterone receptor) and HER2 status. Secondly, the pathologist evaluates the pathological response and the status of surgical margins with regards to the residual tumour on the surgical specimen after neoadjuvant treatment. These parameters are important for the management of the patient, since it has been shown that complete pathological response is associated with improved disease free survival. Several grading systems are used to assess the pathological response in breast and axillary lymph nodes. The most frequently used in France are currently the systems described by Sataloff et al. and Chevallier et al. In this review, we detail the different steps involving the pathologist in neoadjuvant setting, with special regards to the quality process and future perspectives such as emerging predictive biomarkers.

Cardiac MRI in pulmonary artery hypertension: correlations between morphological and functional parameters and invasive measurements.

OBJECTIVE: To compare cardiac MRI with right heart catheterisation in patients with pulmonary hypertension (PH) and to evaluate its ability to assess PH severity. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty patients were included. MRI included cine and phase-contrast sequences, study of ventricular function, cardiac cavity areas and ratios, position of the interventricular septum (IVS) in systole and diastole, and flow measurements. We defined four groups according to the severity of PH and three groups according to IVS position: A, normal position; B, abnormal in diastole; C, abnormal in diastole and systole. RESULTS: IVS position was correlated with pulmonary artery pressures and PVR (pulmonary vascular resistance). Median pulmonary artery pressures and resistance were significantly higher in patients with an abnormal septal position compared with those with a normal position. Correlations were good between the right ventricular ejection fraction and PVR, right ventricular end-systolic volume and PAP, percentage of right ventricular area change and PVR, and diastolic and systolic ventricular area ratio and PVR. These parameters were significantly associated with PH severity. CONCLUSION: Cardiac MRI can help to assess the severity of PH.