Radiofrequency localization of nonpalpable breast cancer in a multicentre prospective cohort study: feasibility, clinical acceptability, and safety.

PURPOSE: In breast conserving surgery, accurate lesion localization is essential for obtaining adequate surgical margins. Preoperative wire localization (WL) and radioactive seed localization (RSL) are widely accepted methods to guide surgical excision of nonpalpable breast lesions but are limited by logistical challenges, migration issues, and legislative complexities. Radiofrequency identification (RFID) technology may offer a viable alternative. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility, clinical acceptability, and safety of RFID surgical guidance for localization of nonpalpable breast cancer. METHODS: In a prospective multicentre cohort study, the first 100 RFID localization procedures were included. The primary outcome was the percentage of clear resection margins and re-excision rate. Secondary outcomes included procedure details, user experience, learningcurve, and adverse events. RESULTS: Between April 2019 and May 2021, 100 women underwent RFID guided breast conserving surgery. Clear resection margins were obtained in 89 out of 96 included patients (92.7%), re-excision was indicated in three patients (3.1%). Radiologists reported difficulties with the placement of the RFID tag, partially related to the relatively large needle-applicator (12-gauge). This led to the premature termination of the study in the hospital using RSL as regular care. The radiologist experience was improved after a manufacturer modification of the needle-applicator. Surgical localization involved a low learning curve. Adverse events (n = 33) included dislocation of the marker during insertion (8%) and hematomas (9%). The majority of adverse events (85%) occurred using the first-generation needle-applicator. CONCLUSION: RFID technology is a potential alternative for non-radioactive and non-wire localization of nonpalpable breast lesions.

Long-term Survival in Breast Cancer Patients Is Associated with Contralateral Parenchymal Enhancement at MRI: Outcomes of the SELECT Study.

Background Several single-center studies found that high contralateral parenchymal enhancement (CPE) at breast MRI was associated with improved long-term survival in patients with estrogen receptor (ER)-positive and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negative breast cancer. Due to varying sample sizes, population characteristics, and follow-up times, consensus of the association is currently lacking. Purpose To confirm whether CPE is associated with long-term survival in a large multicenter retrospective cohort, and to investigate if CPE is associated with endocrine therapy effectiveness. Materials and Methods This multicenter observational cohort included women with unilateral ER-positive HER2-negative breast cancer (tumor size ≤50 mm and ≤three positive lymph nodes) who underwent MRI from January 2005 to December 2010. Overall survival (OS), recurrence-free survival (RFS), and distant RFS (DRFS) were assessed. Kaplan-Meier analysis was performed to investigate differences in absolute risk after 10 years, stratified according to CPE tertile. Multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression analysis was performed to investigate whether CPE was associated with prognosis and endocrine therapy effectiveness. Results Overall, 1432 women (median age, 54 years [IQR, 47-63 years]) were included from 10 centers. Differences in absolute OS after 10 years were stratified according to CPE tertile as follows: 88.5% (95% CI: 88.1, 89.1) in tertile 1, 85.8% (95% CI: 85.2, 86.3) in tertile 2, and 85.9% (95% CI: 85.4, 86.4) in tertile 3. CPE was independently associated with OS, with a hazard ratio (HR) of 1.17 (95% CI: 1.0, 1.36; P = .047), but was not associated with RFS (HR, 1.11; P = .16) or DRFS (HR, 1.11; P = .19). The effect of endocrine therapy on survival could not be accurately assessed; therefore, the association between endocrine therapy efficacy and CPE could not reliably be estimated. Conclusion High contralateral parenchymal enhancement was associated with a marginally decreased overall survival in patients with estrogen receptor-positive and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-negative breast cancer, but was not associated with recurrence-free survival (RFS) or distant RFS. Published under a CC BY 4.0 license. Supplemental material is available for this article. See also the editorial by Honda and Iima in this issue.

A multicenter prospective cohort study to evaluate feasibility of radio-frequency identification surgical guidance for nonpalpable breast lesions: design and rationale of the RFID Localizer 1 Trial.

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer screening and improving imaging techniques have led to an increase in the detection rate of early, nonpalpable breast cancers. For early breast cancer, breast conserving surgery is an effective and safe treatment. Accurate intraoperative lesion localization during breast conserving surgery is essential for adequate surgical margins while sparing surrounding healthy tissue to achieve optimal cosmesis. Preoperative wire localization and radioactive seed localization are accepted standard methods to guide surgical excision of nonpalpable breast lesions. However, these techniques present significant limitations. Radiofrequency identification (RFID) technology offers a new, nonradioactive method for localizing nonpalpable breast lesions in patients undergoing breast conserving surgery. This study aims to evaluate the feasibility of RFID surgical guidance for nonpalpable breast lesions. METHODS: This multicenter prospective cohort study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of the University Medical Center Utrecht. Written informed consent is obtained from all participants. Women with nonpalpable, histologically proven in situ or invasive breast cancer, who can undergo breast conserving surgery with RFID localization are considered eligible for participation. An RFID tag is placed under ultrasound guidance, up to 30 days preoperatively. The surgeon localizes the RFID tag with a radiofrequency reader that provides audible and visual real-time surgical guidance. The primary study outcome is the percentage of irradical excisions and reexcision rate, which will be compared to standards of the National Breast Cancer Organisation Netherlands (NABON)(≤ 15% irradical excisions of invasive carcinomas). Secondary outcomes include user acceptability/experiences, learning curve, duration and ease of the placement- and surgical procedure and adverse events. DISCUSSION: This study evaluates the feasibility of RFID surgical guidance for nonpalpable breast lesions. Results may have implications for the future localization techniques in women with nonpalpable breast cancer undergoing breast conserving surgery. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Netherlands National Trial Register, NL8019 , registered on September 12th 2019.

Incidental intracranial aneurysms in patients with internal carotid artery stenosis: a CT angiography study and a metaanalysis.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Smoking and hypertension are important risk factors for atherosclerotic carotid artery disease, but also for intracranial aneurysms. We studied the presence of aneurysms in a series of patients with internal carotid artery (ICA) stenosis and performed a systematic review of the literature to assess in patients with ICA stenosis the prevalence of intracranial aneurysms, gender differences in prevalence, and the size of the aneurysms found. METHODS: In a prospectively collected series of patients with symptomatic ICA stenosis >50% on CTA we assessed the proportion with intracranial aneurysms. We performed "Embase" and "Pubmed" searches for studies on patients with ICA stenosis (domain) and intracranial aneurysms (outcome measurement). We calculated overall prevalence and relative risks for gender, both with corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI). RESULTS: We found an intracranial aneurysm in 8 of our 194 patients (4.1%; [95% CI 1.3 to 6.9]). The literature search resulted in 5 relevant and valid articles, totaling 4251 patients. The overall prevalence in all series combined was 3.2% (95% CI 2.7 to 3.7); the prevalence of aneurysms larger than 5 mm was 0.9% (95% CI 0.6 to 1.1). Women had a higher risk then men (relative risk 1.6; [59% CI 1.1 to 2.3]). CONCLUSIONS: About 1% of patients with a symptomatic ICA stenosis have an intracranial aneurysm with a higher than negligible risk of rupture, but in deciding aneurysms treatment the risk of cardiovascular diseases other than aneurismal rupture should be taken into account. The proportion of patients with aneurysms seems higher in series of patients with ICA stenosis than in the general population.