Concomitant Metastases Research Articles

Infiltration of mammary carcinoma as an indicator of axillary node metastasis. A preliminary report.

The mammographic and pathologic material of 58 women who underwent radical mastectomy for infiltrating duct carcinoma was reviewed. A statistically significant increase in the frequency of axillary lymph node metastasis accompanied carcinomas which in mammograms appeared highly rather than slightly infiltrative. Among the 52 cases in which approximate tumor volume could be determined, a significantly greater proportion of highly infiltrative tumors was found among small tumors than among large tumors. Highly infiltrative tumors of large size metastasized to axillary lymph nodes more often than did those of small size. These results imply that the extent of macroscopic local tumor infiltration as recorded by mammography can serve as a guide to the frequency of concomitant metastasis to the axillary lymph nodes.