Ultrasound-guided breast-conserving surgery compared to conventional breast-conserving surgery.

PURPOSE: The goal of breast-conserving surgery is to achieve negative tumor margins, since insufficient marginal distance is associated with more local and distant recurrences. This study investigates whether IOUS (intraoperative ultrasound) can reduce the re-resection rate compared to standard breast surgery, regardless of tumor biology and focality. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The present study is a monocentric, prospective, randomized, and non-blinded parallel group study conducted between 7/2015 and 2/2018. Patients with sonographically visible breast cancer were randomized into two study arms: 1) breast-conserving surgery with IOUS; 2) conventional arm. RESULTS: 364 patients were included in the study and underwent surgery. Tumor biology, size, and focality were equally distributed in both groups (p = 0.497). The study arms did not differ significantly in the proportion of preoperative wire markings (p= 0.084), specimen weight (p = 0.225), surgery duration (p = 0.849), and the proportion of shavings taken intraoperatively (p = 0.903). Positive margins were present in 16.6% of the cases in the IOUS arm and in 20.8% in the conventional arm (p = 0.347). Re-operation was necessary after intraoperative shavings in 14.4% of cases in the US arm and in 21.3% in the conventional arm (p = 0.100). CONCLUSION: Although the present study showed a clear difference in the rate of positive tumor margins with IOUS compared to conventional breast surgery without IOUS, this was not statistically significant in contrast to the current literature. This could be due to the high expertise of the breast surgeons, the precise wire marking, or the fact that the IOUS technique was not standardized.

Evaluation of sonographic detectability of different markers within an in vitro simulation model of the axilla.

PURPOSE: Clip-marking of axillary lymph nodes with initial biopsy-confirmed metastasis is required for targeted axillary dissection (TAD), which includes sentinel lymph node dissection (SLND) and selective localization and removal of the clipped targeted lymph node. There have been several studies which examined the feasibility of TAD in routine clinical use. In this context, the optimal clip visualisation was noted as one of the crucial limiting factors. We, therefore, evaluated the sonographic detectability of 10 different commercially available markers within an in vitro model simulating the anatomical composition of the axilla. METHODS: In this standardised model consisting of porcine fat with 30 mm thickness, the visibility of a total of ten markers was analysed in all 3 planes (parallel, diagonal, orthograde) with wire guidance and then classified into either "visibility good", "visibility moderate" or "visibility poor" with regard to the alignment of the transducer. Additionally, "real-life conditions" were simulated, in which the markers were searched without any wires guidance. RESULTS: It was observed that, while not all markers are detectable in fatty tissue, markers with spherical shape (non-embedded Inconel or Nitinol) or rectangular-shaped Titanium markers with embedded material have a clear advantage. 3D-shaped markers can always be detected in all three axes, which is of particular importance in the axilla with its pyramid shape and fatty tissue. CONCLUSION: The shape and the embedding of the material play a crucial role for visibility and efficacy of the marker, as reliable marking of suspicious and pathological axillary lymph nodes is essential for TAD.

Percutaneous Ultrasound-Guided Core Needle Biopsy: Comparison of 16-Gauge versus 14-Gauge Needle and the Effect of Coaxial Guidance in 1065 Breast Biopsies - A Prospective Randomized Clinical Noninferiority Trial.

PURPOSE: Ultrasound-guided core needle biopsy (CNB) is considered the standard assessment to diagnose sonographically visible suspicious breast mass lesions. Based on nonrandomized trials, the current German guidelines recommend at least three cylinders with ≤ 14-gauge needle biopsy. However, no recommendation is made as to how many specimens are needed with a smaller needle size, such as 16-gauge, or if biopsy with coaxial guidance improves diagnostic accuracy and quality. Therefore, in a prospective monocentric unblinded randomized controlled clinical noninferiority trial, the diagnostic accuracy of 16-gauge versus 14-gauge core needle biopsy, with and without coaxial guidance, was evaluated. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 1065 breast biopsies were included in order to analyze the number of core samples necessary to obtain an appropriate rate of diagnostic quality adequate for histological evaluation, and to achieve high diagnostic accuracy and diagnostic yield. Histological results were verified by surgery or long-term follow-up of at least two years up to five years. RESULTS: In order to obtain an additive diagnostic accuracy of > 99 %, a minimum of two cylinders with 14-gauge biopsy were required. The diagnostic accuracy and the diagnostic quality of 14-gauge biopsy were not affected by the coaxial technique. When performing a 16-gauge biopsy, five cylinders were required to achieve an additive diagnostic accuracy of > 99 %. Without coaxial guidance, 16-gauge CNB required at least three samples, whereas five needle passes with coaxial-guided 16-gauge biopsy were needed. CONCLUSION: The diagnostic accuracy and quality of ultrasound-guided 16-gauge core needle biopsy were inferior to the 14-gauge needle size, regardless of the use of a coaxial technique.

Ultrasound-Assisted Tumor Surgery in Breast Cancer - A Prospective, Randomized, Single-Center Study (MAC 001).

PURPOSE: Breast-conserving therapy is associated with a risk of tumor-involved margins. For intraoperative orientation, non- palpable or indistinctly palpable lesions are wire-marked prior to surgery. Ultrasound-guided surgery has the potential to reduce the number of tumor-involved margins. In the MAC 001 trial we evaluated ultrasound-guided breast-conserving surgery compared to wire-guided surgery with regard to free tumor margins, duration of surgery and resection volume. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this randomized, prospective, single-center controlled trial, patients with ductal invasive breast cancer were recruited for either ultrasound-guided or wire localization surgery. Primary outcomes were tumor-free resection margins, the reoperation rate and the resection volume in each group. The results were analyzed by intention to treat. The trial was registered under ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02222675. RESULTS: 56 patients were assessed, and 47 patients were evaluated in the trial. 93 % (25/27) of the patients in the ultrasound arm had an R0 reoperation compared to 65 % (13/20) in the wire localization control arm. This result was statistically significant (p = 0.026). No statistical difference was found for the resection volume or the duration of surgery between the two arms. No major complication was seen in either arm. CONCLUSION: Ultrasound-assisted breast surgery significantly increases the possibility of tumor-free margins and therefore reduces the risk of reoperations. Breast surgeons should be trained in ultrasound and ultrasound should be available in every breast surgery operating room.

Sentinel-lymph-node biopsy in patients with breast cancer before and after neoadjuvant chemotherapy (SENTINA): a prospective, multicentre cohort study.

BACKGROUND: The optimum timing of sentinel-lymph-node biopsy for breast cancer patients treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy is uncertain. The SENTINA (SENTinel NeoAdjuvant) study was designed to evaluate a specific algorithm for timing of a standardised sentinel-lymph-node biopsy procedure in patients who undergo neoadjuvant chemotherapy. METHODS: SENTINA is a four-arm, prospective, multicentre cohort study undertaken at 103 institutions in Germany and Austria. Women with breast cancer who were scheduled for neoadjuvant chemotherapy were enrolled into the study. Patients with clinically node-negative disease (cN0) underwent sentinel-lymph-node biopsy before neoadjuvant chemotherapy (arm A). If the sentinel node was positive (pN1), a second sentinel-lymph-node biopsy procedure was done after neoadjuvant chemotherapy (arm B). Women with clinically node-positive disease (cN+) received neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Those who converted to clinically node-negative disease after chemotherapy (ycN0; arm C) were treated with sentinel-lymph-node biopsy and axillary dissection. Only patients whose clinical nodal status remained positive (ycN1) underwent axillary dissection without sentinel-lymph-node biopsy (arm D). The primary endpoint was accuracy (false-negative rate) of sentinel-lymph-node biopsy after neoadjuvant chemotherapy for patients who converted from cN1 to ycN0 disease during neoadjuvant chemotherapy (arm C). Secondary endpoints included comparison of the detection rate of sentinel-lymph-node biopsy before and after neoadjuvant chemotherapy, and also the false-negative rate and detection rate of sentinel-lymph-node biopsy after removal of the sentinel lymph node. Analyses were done according to treatment received (per protocol). FINDINGS: Of 1737 patients who received treatment, 1022 women underwent sentinel-lymph-node biopsy before neoadjuvant chemotherapy (arms A and B), with a detection rate of 99.1% (95% CI 98.3-99.6; 1013 of 1022). In patients who converted after neoadjuvant chemotherapy from cN+ to ycN0 (arm C), the detection rate was 80.1% (95% CI 76.6-83.2; 474 of 592) and false-negative rate was 14.2% (95% CI 9.9-19.4; 32 of 226). The false-negative rate was 24.3% (17 of 70) for women who had one node removed and 18.5% (10 of 54) for those who had two sentinel nodes removed (arm C). In patients who had a second sentinel-lymph-node biopsy procedure after neoadjuvant chemotherapy (arm B), the detection rate was 60.8% (95% CI 55.6-65.9; 219 of 360) and the false-negative rate was 51.6% (95% CI 38.7-64.2; 33 of 64). INTERPRETATION: Sentinel-lymph-node biopsy is a reliable diagnostic method before neoadjuvant chemotherapy. After systemic treatment or early sentinel-lymph-node biopsy, the procedure has a lower detection rate and a higher false-negative rate compared with sentinel-lymph-node biopsy done before neoadjuvant chemotherapy. These limitations should be considered if biopsy is planned after neoadjuvant chemotherapy. FUNDING: Brustkrebs Deutschland, German Society for Senology, German Breast Group.

Optical Emission Spectroscopy for the Real-Time Identification of Malignant Breast Tissue.

Breast conserving resection with free margins is the gold standard treatment for early breast cancer recommended by guidelines worldwide. Therefore, reliable discrimination between normal and malignant tissue at the resection margins is essential. In this study, normal and abnormal tissue samples from breast cancer patients were characterized ex vivo by optical emission spectroscopy (OES) based on ionized atoms and molecules generated during electrosurgical treatment. The aim of the study was to determine spectroscopic features which are typical for healthy and neoplastic breast tissue allowing for future real-time tissue differentiation and margin assessment during breast cancer surgery. A total of 972 spectra generated by electrosurgical sparking on normal and abnormal tissue were used for support vector classifier (SVC) training. Specific spectroscopic features were selected for the classification of tissues in the included breast cancer patients. The average classification accuracy for all patients was 96.9%. Normal and abnormal breast tissue could be differentiated with a mean sensitivity of 94.8%, a specificity of 99.0%, a positive predictive value (PPV) of 99.1% and a negative predictive value (NPV) of 96.1%. For 66.6% patients all classifications reached 100%. Based on this convincing data, a future clinical application of OES-based tissue differentiation in breast cancer surgery seems to be feasible.

Residual Axillary Burden After Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy (NACT) in Early Breast Cancer in Patients with a priori Clinically Occult Nodal Metastases - a transSENTINA Analysis.

Background Among patients with breast cancer undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT), the association between pathological complete remission (pCR) in the breast and clinical/pathological parameters is well established, whereas the association between these parameters and residual axillary involvement after NACT remains unclear. Methods Patients with clinically occult nodal metastases (i.e. negative by clinical assessment but positive by SLNB prior to NACT, i.e. Arm B of the SENTINA trial) were included in the presented analysis. All patients received a second sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) and axillary dissection after NACT. Univariate and multivariate analyses were carried out to evaluate the association between clinical/pathological parameters and axillary involvement after NACT. Results Arm B of the SENTINA study contained 360 patients, 318 of which were evaluable for this analysis. After NACT, 71/318 (22.3%) patients had involved SLNs or non-SLNs after NACT. Overall, 71/318 (22.3%) patients achieved a pCR in the breast. Associations of extranodal spread, lack of multifocality and pCR in the breast with residual axillary burden were statistically significant. In a descriptive analysis including all patients with clinically negative axilla before NACT in the SENTINA trial 1.2% of triple negative (TN) patients and 0.5% of HER/2 positive patients had residual axillary disease in case of a breast pCR. Conclusions Patients in the SENTINA trial with clinically negative axilla and involved SLNs still carried a significant risk of nodal metastases after NACT. However, the risk of residual axillary burden was particularly low in TN and HER/2 positive tumors in case of a breast pCR.

Correction: Residual Axillary Burden After Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy (NACT) in Early Breast Cancer in Patients with a priori Clinically Occult Nodal Metastases - a transSENTINA Analysis.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1055/a-1298-3453.].

Validation of a Nomogram Predicting Non-Sentinel Lymph Node Metastases among Patients with Breast Cancer after Primary Systemic Therapy - a transSENTINA Substudy.

BACKGROUND: Prediction of non-sentinel lymph node (SLN) status after primary systemic therapy (PST) may allow tailored axillary staging. The aim of this analysis was to compare established nomograms from i) the primary operative (n = 6) and ii) the neoadjuvant (n = 1) setting with an optimized nomogram to predict non-SLN status in patients after PST. METHODS: 181 patients converting from cN1 prior to PST to ycN0 but found to have a histologically positive SLN in the SENTINA trial were analyzed. Established models were applied. An optimized model was compiled using univariate and subsequent multivariable logistic regression (backward selection, likelihood ratio test). RESULTS: Area-under-the-curve (AUC) values from the primary operative models showed sufficient performance (0.82-0.71). For the neoadjuvant model, the AUC was found to be inferior to prior analyses (0.66) but within published confidence intervals. The SENTINA nomogram comprised the diameter of the largest lymph node (p = 0.006, odds ratio (OR) = 1.19), tumor size prior to PST (p = 0.085, OR = 1.31), and number of all positive SLN (p = 0.083, OR = 2.04). This model was validated using a separate cohort of arm C (n = 168, AUC 0.79, 95% confidence interval 0.74-0.85). CONCLUSION: We validated 7 models of prediction of non-SLN among patients showing axillary conversion through PST. Our own 'SENTINA nomogram' yielded AUC values comparable to previous nomograms.

Prediction of Non-sentinel Lymph Node Metastases After Positive Sentinel Lymph Nodes Using Nomograms.

BACKGROUND/AIM: Only 30-50% of patients with sentinel lymph node (SLN) metastases present with further axillary lymph node metastases. Therefore, up to 70% of patients with positive SLN are overtreated by axillary dissection (AD) and may suffer from complications such as sensory disturbances or lymphedema. According to the current S3 guidelines, AD can be avoided in patients with a T1/T2 tumor if breast-conserving surgery with subsequent tangential irradiation is performed and no more than two SLNs are affected. Additionally, use of nomograms, that predict the probability of non-sentinel lymph node (NSLN) metastases, is recommended. Therefore, models for the prediction of NSLN metastases in our defined population were constructed and compared with the published nomograms. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In a retrospective study, 2,146 primary breast cancer patients, who underwent SLN biopsy at the University Women's Hospital in Tuebingen, were evaluated by dividing the patient group in a training and validation collective (TC or VC). Using the SLN-positive TC patients, three models for the prediction of the likelihood of NSLN metastases were adapted and were then validated using the SLN-positive VC patients. In addition, the predictive power of nomograms from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC), Stanford, and the Cambridge model were compared with regard to our patient collective. RESULTS: A total of 2,146 patients were included in the study. Of these, 470 patients had positive SLN, 295 consisted the training collective and 175 consisted the validation collective. In a regression model, three variants - with 11, 6 and 2 variables - were developed for the prediction of NSLN metastases in our defined population and compared to the most frequently used nomograms. Our variants with 11 and with 6 variables were proven to be a particularly suitable model and showed similarly good results as the published MSKCC nomogram. CONCLUSION: Our developed nomograms may be used as a prediction tool for NSLN metastases after positive SLN.

Using ultrasound and palpation for predicting axillary lymph node status following neoadjuvant chemotherapy - Results from the multi-center SENTINA trial.

BACKGROUND: With the growing importance of neoadjuvant systemic therapy (NST) the assessment of post neoadjuvant axillary status is of increasing importance especially in patients who presented initially with suspicious nodes (cN1). This study aims to investigate the predictive value of palpation and axillary ultrasound of formerly cN1 patients following NST. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The SENTINA trial (SENTinel NeoAdjuvant) is a 4-arm prospective multicenter study designed to evaluate the role of sentinel node biopsy (SLNB) in the context of neoadjuvant systemic treatment (NST) of breast cancer patients. RESULTS: 1240 patients from 103 institutions entered the trial. 715 (arm C n = 592; arm D n = 123) patients, who presented initially cN1 underwent clinical evaluation of lymph node status following NST. Palpation alone demonstrated a sensitivity of 8.3%, specifity of 94.8% and a negative predictive value (NPV) of 46.6%. Ultrasound alone revealed a sensitivity of 23.9%, specificity 91.7%, and a NPV of 50.3%.The investigators combined classification (palpation and ultrasound) resulted in a sensitivity of 24.4%, specificity 91.4%, and a NPV of 50.3%. Investigators classified the axilla nodes as being unsuspicious (cN0) following NST in 592/715 patients; of them 298 (50.3%) were pN0, 151 (25.5%) had 1-2 histologically involved nodes and 143 (24.2%) had >2 histologically involved nodes. CONCLUSION: The diagnostic accuracy of ultrasound and palpation following NST is unacceptably low and additional tools for evaluation of the axillary lymph node status following NST are urgently needed.

Breast-conserving surgery and autogenous tissue reconstruction in patients with breast cancer: efficacy of MRI of the breast in the detection of recurrent disease.

The objective of the present study was the evaluation of MRI of the breast in the follow-up of patients who had undergone autogenous tissue breast reconstruction using either a latissimus-dorsi muscle flap or a transverse rectus abdominis myocutaneous (TRAM) flap as correlated with patients' clinical, conventional mammographic and sonographic findings. Included in the study were 41 patients. The MRI consisted of T2-weighted turbo spin-echo (TSE) sequences and dynamic measurements pre- and postcontrast using T1-weighted gradient-echo (GE) sequence. The following factors were evaluated: recognition of the flap; evidence of edema; skin thickening; and focally increased contrast medium uptake. Contrast medium dynamics were documented in instances of increased focal uptake. Flaps could be distinguished from surrounding residual breast tissue in all cases. Edema and skin thickening in the residual mammary tissue and flap implant were observed in 72.7% of patients undergoing radiation, but in only 15.8% of those not undergoing radiotherapy. The MRI excluded disease recurrence in 4 patients with suspicious mammographic and/or sonographic findings. One instance of multifocal disease recurrence identified at MRI evaded detection with all other imaging techniques used. The MRI returned false-positive findings in three cases. Because of their configuration and contrast medium uptake dynamics and their location immediately adjacent to the contact zone between the flap implant and residual mammary tissue, these findings were impossible to differentiate from a recurrent carcinoma. The MRI of the breast is generally suitable for follow-up examination of autogenous tissue reconstructions. Problems may be encountered in the evaluation of the contact zone between local adipose tissue and the flap leading to false-positive results.