Table 5.
Main Studies Mentioned in the Discussion
| Author | Year | Country | Study Design | Case Number | Median Follow-Up Duration | Main Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fan4 | 2010 | China | Retrospective | 48 mISLM and 33 sISLM patients | 93 months (range, 22–293 months) | Axillary lymph node metastasis status and chemotherapy after occurrence of ISLM were independent prognostic predictors for mISLM patients. |
| Bisase15 | 2012 | UK | Questionnaire | 117 clinicians | / | There was a noticeable variation in opinion for neck lymph node dissection. |
| Chen16 | 2010 | China | Retrospective | 127 ISLM patients | Not mentioned | ISLM patients who underwent neck dissection had better 5-year and 10-year OS rates than those who did not. |
| Jung17 | 2015 | South Korea | Retrospective | 111 ISLM patients | Not mentioned | Local aggressive treatment (including breast surgery, axillary lymph node dissection, supraclavicular lymph node excision, RT and chemotherapy) improved OS, but the role of supraclavicular lymph node excision was uncertain. |
| Huang18 | 2007 | USA | Retrospective | 71 ISLM patients | 3.7 years (range, 1.0–24.0 years) | The benefit of neck lymph node surgery may be offset by the risk of distant metastasis. |
| Nikpayam19 | 2015 | France | Retrospective | 39 ISLM patients | 24 months (range, 1–59 months) | Radical lymph node surgery was not proven to be beneficial. |
| Kim10 | 2020 | South Korea | Retrospective | 91 ISLM patients | 72 months (range, 7–182 months) | Neither supraclavicular lymph node excision nor supraclavicular lymph node RT dose ≥54 Gy improved locoregional control. |
| Ai20 | 2020 | China | Retrospective | 305 ISLM patients | 36 months (range, 2–175 months) | Supraclavicular lymph node dissection may not beneficial in improving survival for unselected breast cancer patients with ISLM. |
| Zhang21 | 2017 | China | Retrospective | 90 ISLM patients | 85 months (range, 6–111 months) | The benefit of neck surgery in ISLM patients may be related to pathological classification. |
| Wu28 | 2014 | China | Retrospective | 39 ISLM patients | 35 months | No significant difference in the 3-year locoregional control rate was found between patients who were treated with radiotherapy at ≤50 Gy and >50 Gy. |
| Park29 | 2011 | South Korea | Retrospective | 55 N3c patients | 38 months (range, 9–80 months) | Higher-dose RT was not associated with additional survival gains in locoregional control or DFS. |
| Skinner30 | 2013 | USA | Retrospective | 159 LRR patients | 94 months | Radiation dose escalation did not improve locoregional control rate. |
| Kim11 | 2019 | South Korea | Retrospective | 136 ISLM patients | 61 months (range, 7–173 months) | A higher RT dose to ISLM was not associated with the improved DFS. |
Abbreviations: ISLM, ipsilateral supraclavicular lymph node metastasis; mISLM, metachronous ISLM; sISLM, synchronous ISLM; DFS, disease-free survival; PFS, progression-free survival; OS, overall survival; RT, radiotherapy; LRR, local regional recurrence.