Cancer Res Treat.  2015 Oct;47(4):757-764. 10.4143/crt.2014.039.

Using the Lymph Node Ratio to Evaluate the Prognosis of Stage II/III Breast Cancer Patients Who Received Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy and Mastectomy

Affiliations
  • 1Xiamen Cancer Center, Department of Radiation Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, Xiamen, China.
  • 2Department of Radiation Oncology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Guangzhou, China. hezhy@sysucc.org.cn
  • 3Xiamen Cancer Center, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, Xiamen, China.

Abstract

PURPOSE
This study was conducted to investigate the prognostic value of lymph node ratio (LNR) in stage II/III breast cancer patients who undergo mastectomy after neoadjuvant chemotherapy.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Clinical and pathological data describing stage II/III breast cancer patients were included in this retrospective study. The primary outcomes were locoregional recurrence-free survival (LRFS), distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS), disease-free survival (DFS), and overall survival (OS).
RESULTS
Among 277 patients, there were 43 ypN0, 64 ypN1, 89 ypN2, and 81 ypN3 cases. Additionally, there were 43, 57, 92 and 85 cases in the LNR 0, 0.01-0.20, 0.21-0.65, and > 0.65 groups, respectively. The median follow-up was 49.5 months. Univariate analysis showed that both ypN stage and LNR were prognostic factors of LRFS, DMFS, DFS, and OS (p < 0.05). Multivariate analysis showed that LNR was an independent prognostic factor of LRFS, DMFS, DFS, and OS (p < 0.05), while ypN stage had no effect on prognosis (p > 0.05).
CONCLUSION
The integrated use of LNR and ypN may be suitable for evaluation the prognosis of stage II/III breast cancer patients who undergo mastectomy after neoadjuvant chemotherapy.

Keyword

Breast neoplasms; Mastectomy; Neoadjuvant therapy; Lymph nodes; Prognosis

MeSH Terms

Breast Neoplasms*
Breast*
Disease-Free Survival
Drug Therapy*
Follow-Up Studies
Humans
Lymph Nodes*
Mastectomy*
Multivariate Analysis
Neoadjuvant Therapy
Prognosis*
Retrospective Studies

Figure

  • Fig. 1. Comparison of Kaplan-Meier curves for different lymph node ratios (LNRs) and ypN stages. (A, E) Locoregional recurrence-free survival. (B, F) Distant metastasis-free survival. (C, G) Disease-free survival. (D, H) Overall survival. pN (A-D) and LNR (E-H).


Reference

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