Efficacy of Breast Ultrasonography for Detection of Local, Regional, and Contralateral Recurrence of Breast Cancer

Abstract

Purpose: Breast ultrasonography (US) is not recommended for recurrence monitoring after breast cancer surgery due to the lack of evidence for its advantage. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of US for detecting local recurrence (LR), regional recurrence (RR) and contralateral breast cancer (CBC) in breast cancer patients during follow-up. Methods: The medical records of 5,833 breast cancer patients who underwent breast cancer surgery between January 2003 and December 2009 were reviewed retrospectively. Physical examination (PE), mammography (MMG), and US were done routinely to detect recurrences. Detection rate for locoregional and contralateral recurrence was compared between the three modalities. Results: During the follow-up period, 125 LR, 46 RR, 83 CBC, and 29 synchronous local and regional recurrences developed in 245 patients among the study population of 5,833 breast cancer patients. Median time to recurrence was 34.7 months. The recurrence detection rate was 51.9%, 43.5%, and 90.1% for PE, MMG, and US, respectively. Mean size of the recurrent lesions detected by US (1.57 cm) was smaller than that of PE (2.69 cm) and MMG (2.03 cm) (p =0.002). Conclusion: Breast US had higher recurrence detection rate for LR, RR, and CBC than PE or MMG after breast cancer surgery.