Juan A Mieza - Arana
Cruces Universitary Hospital, Spain
Title: Breast cancer: Small tumours and large axillary lymph nodes. A report of two cases
Biography
Biography: Juan A Mieza - Arana
Abstract
According to the International stage system (TNM) in Breast Cancer, there is a direct relationship between tumor size
and axillary lymph node status since T1 tumors (usually diagnosed in screening campaigns) are infrequently associated
with axillary lymph node metastases and the selective sentinel node biopsy is commonly indicated. On the other hand, and
due to the utilization of genetic platforms, now is known that approximately 32% of the small tumors detected in screening
campaigns present a “high risk” profile. May be observed cases in which, at the time of diagnosis, predominate the metastatic
axillary lymph node components over the tumor size. We present two cases in 47 and 70-year-old patients respectively, with
prominent axillary disease and clinically occult “small” tumors (T1), along with their molecular/genetic profile. In both cases,
the molecular/genetic profile was “aggressive” or “high risk”, which reinforces both the “genomic paradigm” for the spread of
breast cancer and call into question the TNM system validity at the time of planning a therapy and establishing a prognosis.