Triple-negative breast cancer: correlation between imaging and pathological findings.
OBJECTIVE
This study was designed to investigate the mammography and ultrasound findings of triple-negative breast cancer and to compare the results with characteristics of ER-positive/PR-negative/HER2-negative breast cancer and ER-negative/PR-negative/HER2-positive breast cancer.


METHODS
From January 2007 to October 2008, mammography and ultrasound findings of 245 patients with pathologically confirmed triple-negative (n = 87), ER-positive/PR-negative/HER2-negative (n = 93) or ER-negative/PR-negative/HER2-positive breast cancers (n = 65) were retrospectively reviewed. We also reviewed pathological reports for information on the histological type, histological grade and the status of the biological markers.


RESULTS
Triple-negative breast cancers showed a high histological grade. On mammography, triple-negative breast cancers usually presented with a mass (43/87, 49%) or with focal asymmetry (19/87, 22%), and were less associated with calcifications. On ultrasound, the cancers were less frequently seen as non-mass lesions (12/87, 14%), more likely to have circumscribed margins (43/75, 57%), were markedly hypoechoic (36/75, 57%) and less likely to show posterior shadowing (4/75, 5%). Among the three types of breast cancers, ER-negative/PR-negative/HER2-positive breast cancers most commonly had associated calcifications (52/65, 79%) on mammography and were depicted as non-mass lesions (21/65, 32%) on ultrasound.


CONCLUSIONS
Our results suggest that the imaging findings might be useful in diagnosing triple-negative breast cancer.
Ko
Eun Sook
ES
Department of Radiology, Korea Cancer Centre Hospital, 215-4 Gongneung-Dong, Nowon-Gu, Seoul, 139-706, Korea. esko@kcch.re.kr
Lee
Byung Hee
BH
Kim
Hyun-A
HA
Noh
Woo-Chul
WC
Kim
Min Suk
MS
Lee
Sang-Ah
SA
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008327:Mammography; D008875:Middle Aged; D009376:Neoplasms, Hormone-Dependent / Q000473:pathology; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases / Q000378:metabolism; D011960:Receptors, Estrogen / Q000378:metabolism; D011980:Receptors, Progesterone / Q000378:metabolism; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016217:Ultrasonography, Mammary
D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases; D011960:Receptors, Estrogen; D011980:Receptors, Progesterone