To assess the feasibility and diagnostic accuracy of preoperative ultrasound and ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration cytology of axillary lymph nodes in patients of breast carcinoma.

BACKGROUND

Metastasis of the lymph node is one of the most significant prognostic factors for breast cancer (BC).

AIM

To predict positivity of the lymph node in BC patients with help of USG and USG-guided FNAC and thus to prevent unnecessary morbidity.

METHODS

50 patients of incisional/true cut biopsy-proven BC patients were included. All were subjected to mammography, USG and FNAC of the lump breast. USG-guided FNAC of the axillary lymph node was done in 25 of these patients. These findings were assessed by histological examination following dissection of the axillary lymph node.

RESULTS

Axillary lymph node (ALN) metastasis was present in 42 patients on histopathology; 21 patients suspicious of malignancy on preoperative USG were confirmed by HPE. Out of 88 confirmed lymph nodes evaluated on ultrasonography, 4 were benign, 18 were indeterminate and 66 were suspicious. The most promising features were tumour length/depth ratio of <1.5 in 81, absent fatty hilum in 73% and hypoechoic cortex in 74%. Assessment of axilla with USG had a sensitivity of 50%, a specificity of 100%, a PPV of 100%, an NPV of 27.59% and a diagnostic accuracy of 58%. Preoperative USG-guided FNAC had a sensitivity of 91.67%, a specificity of 100%, a PPV of 100%, an NPV of 33.33% and a diagnostic accuracy of 92%.

CONCLUSION

USG can detect non-palpable axillary lymph nodes and FNAC can increase the sensitivity and specificity of this technique, which makes this procedure very promising in detecting axillary metastases in BC patients.