Unusual Contralateral Axillary Lymph Node Metastasis in a Second Primary Breast Cancer Detected by FDG PET/CT and Lymphoscintigraphy

Contralateral Axillary Lymph Node Metastasis of Breast Cancer: Retrospective Analysis and Literature Review

Background

Contralateral axillary lymph node metastasis (CAM) is classified as distant metastasis in guidelines, but the prognosis is better than that of stage IV patients. It is controversial to classify CAM as a distant metastasis or a regional metastasis, and the optimal treatment strategy for CAM is unknown.

Patients and Methods

Breast cancer patients who were confirmed by pathology and treated at Shandong Cancer Hospital between January 2012 and July 2021 were included in our study. We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of the patients for their clinical features, pathological diagnosis, treatment strategy, and follow-up data. Survival analysis was calculated by Kaplan–Meier analysis, and patient matching was performed by case–control matching.

Results

A total of 60 patients were included, and there were 49 metachronous CAM cases and 11 synchronous CAM cases. The prognosis of isolated CAM patients was better than that of patients with other distant metastases in terms of CAM-OS and PFS with significant differences (median CAM-OS 71.0 vs. 30.0 months, P=0.022; median PFS 42.0 vs. 11.0 months, P=0.009) and OS without significant differences (median OS 126.0 vs. 79.0 months, P=0.111). The five-year survival rate of isolated CAM patients was 67.4%, and the five-year disease-free survival (DFS) rate was 52.9%. The prognosis of CAM patients was similar to that of N3M0 patients in terms of OS (mean OS 82.4 vs. 65.6 months, P=0.537) and DFS (mean PFS 54.5 vs. 52.6 months, P=0.888). Axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) or low-middle level ALND significantly improved the OS (mean OS 237.4 vs. 111.0 months, P=0.011), CAM-OS (mean CAM-OS 105.2 vs. 46.6 months, P = 0.002), and PFS (mean PFS 92.3 vs. 26.9 months, P = 0.001) of isolated CAM patients. Axillary radiotherapy improved PFS, CAM-OS, and OS but without significant differences (mean PFS 80.0 vs. 46.6 months, P = 0.345; mean CAM-OS 86.8 vs. 72.1 months, P = 0.338; mean OS 147.6 vs. 133.0 months, P = 0.426).

Conclusion

CAM should be diagnosed as local recurrence and treated with aggressive and curative rather than palliative strategies. Contralateral axillary surgery and radiotherapy are recommended for isolated CAM patients.

Breast cancer metastasizing to the contralateral axilla several years after treatment: A case report with literature review

Introduction and importance

Lymph node metastasis is the most prominent prognostic factor in breast cancer. The aim of this paper is to report a case of contralateral axillary lymph node metastasis (CAM) which look like metachronous initially, but histopathologicaly confirmed as synchronous CAM.

Case presentation

A-44-year old female was a known case of left breast cancer five years prior to this presentation (T2,N2,M0, grade III, Triple negative, multifocal invasive ductal carcinoma). On follow up, multiple contralateral axillary suspicious lymph nodes were discovered. Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology from the lesion revealed grade III, Triple negative, invasive ductal carcinoma consistent with metastasis from the left invasive ductal carcinoma. Bilateral mastectomy and right axillary dissection were performed. The histopathological examination and immunohistochemistry showed left breast recurrent 0.5 cm grade III, Triple negative invasive ductal carcinoma.

Discussion

If a cancer is found in the contralateral axilla, three main potential sources should be considered: contralateral spread from the original breast tumor, metastasis from an occult primary in the ipsilateral breast, and metastasis from an extramammary site.

Conclusion

Although CAM in patients with breast cancer is an uncommon condition, it is still possible to occur. There is a controversy regarding the appropriate management.

•

Lymph node metastasis is the most prominent prognostic factor in breast cancer.

•

Ipsilateral axillary lymphnode metastasis is the most common site of involvement.

•

Contralateral axillary lymphnode metastasis is an unusual finding.

•

In this paper, a case of synchronous contralateral axillary lymph node metastasis has been discussed.

Contralateral Axillary Lymph Node Metastases from Breast Carcinoma: Is it Time to Review TNM Cancer Staging?

BACKGROUND

Contralateral axillary lymph node metastasis (CAM) is an infrequent clinical condition currently considered an M1, stage IV, disease. Due to the absence of shared data on CAM significance and on its therapeutic approach, be it curative or simply palliative, its management is still uncertain and undoubtedly represents a clinical challenge.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Patients with pathologically confirmed metachronous CAM were retrospectively evaluated. All patients had been managed at the European Institute of Oncology, Milan, Italy, from 1997. Patients with distant metastases at the time of CAM were excluded. Possible treatments included surgery, systemic therapy and RT (radiotherapy). Outcomes were evaluated as rates of disease-free survival (DFS) and of overall survival (OS).

RESULTS

Forty-seven patients with CAM were included in the study. Metachronous CAM occurred 73 months (range 5-500 months) after diagnosis of the primary tumor. The median follow-up time was 5.4 years (interquartile range 2.9-7.0 years). The estimated OS was 72% at 5 years (95% CI 54-83), and 61% at 8 years (95% CI 43-75). The estimated DFS was 61% at 5 years (95% CI 44-74), and 42% at 8 years (95% CI 25-59).

CONCLUSION

These findings, together with those from previous studies, show that CAM outcome, particularly if measured as OS, appear better than at other sites of distant dissemination, when CAM is subjected to surgical and systemic treatments with a curative intent. Therefore, a new clinical scenario is suggested where, in the TNM system, CAM is no longer classified as a stage IV, but as an N3 disease.