Influencing factors for regional lymph node recurrence of breast cancer.
BACKGROUND
We investigated whether the risk of developing regional lymph node recurrence was dependant on the number of lymph nodes removed.


OBJECTIVE
We followed 2,961 patients of whom 50 (1.69%) developed regional recurrent disease during a median period of 73 months (4-192 months).


RESULTS
For those women who had involved lymph nodes at initial surgery we were able to establish an inverse correlation between the development of local recurrence and the number of lymph nodes removed in multivariate analysis. For women who had no affected lymph nodes, the number of lymph nodes removed did not influence the incidence of local recurrence.


CONCLUSIONS
We conclude from these data that women who have negative nodal status at surgical staging do not benefit from further systematic axillary resection with regard to regional lymph node recurrence. For those women, however, who have confirmed axillary metastasis, systematic axillary resection lowers the risk of regional lymph node recurrence depending on the number of lymph nodes removed.
Dian
Darius
D
University Hospital München, Maistrasse 11, Munich, 80337, Germany. Darius.Dian@med.uni-muenchen.de
Straub
Julia
J
Scholz
Christoph
C
Mylonas
Ioannis
I
Rack
Brigitte
B
Sommer
Harald
H
Janni
Wolfgang
W
Friese
Klaus
K
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology* / Q000628:therapy; D017024:Chemotherapy, Adjuvant; D004965:Estrogen Antagonists / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008197:Lymph Node Excision; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008408:Mastectomy; D015412:Mastectomy, Segmental; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local; D018714:Radiotherapy, Adjuvant
D004965:Estrogen Antagonists