Table 1.
Characteristics of patients and tumours treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy
| Characteristic | All patients N = 74 |
Axillary non-pCR N = 51 (69%) |
Axillary pCR N = 23 (31%) |
p-value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age (yr) | 51.5 (44–66.5) | 53 (44–68) | 48 (44–62) | 0.24 |
| Breast surgery | 0.209 | |||
| Breast-conserving surgery | 37 (50) | 23 (45.1) | 14 (61) | |
| Mastectomy | 37 (50) | 28 (16.9) | 9 (39) | |
| Axillary surgery | 0.006 | |||
| SLNB | 10 (13.5) | 3 (5.9) | 7 (30.4) | |
| ALND | 58 (78.4) | 42 (25.3) | 16 (69.6) | |
| SLNB + ALND | 6 (8.1) | 6 (11.8) | 0 | |
| Clinical tumour stage | 0.726 | |||
| cT2 | 47 (63.5) | 33 (64.7) | 14 (61) | |
| cT3 | 27 (36.5) | 18 (35.3) | 9 (39) | |
| Primary tumour size (cm)* | 4.2 (2.98–6.05) | 3.9 (2.9–6.2) | 4.8 (3.3–5.8) | 0.248 |
| Histologic type | 0.16 | |||
| IDC | 65 (87.8) | 43 (84.3) | 22 (95.7) | |
| ILC | 8 (10.8) | 7 (13.7) | 1 (4.3) | |
| Other | 1 (1.4) | 1 (2) | 0 | |
| Histologic grade | 0.206 | |||
| Low-intermediate | 61 (82.4) | 44 (86.3) | 17 (73.9) | |
| High | 13 (17.6) | 7 (13.7) | 6 (26.1) | |
| ER | 0.025 | |||
| Positive | 62 (83.8) | 46 (90.2%) | 16 (69.6) | |
| Negative | 12 (16.2) | 5 (9.8%) | 7 (30.4) | |
| PR | 0.236 | |||
| Positive | 49 (66.2) | 36 (70.6%) | 13 (56.5) | |
| Negative | 25 (33.8) | 15 (29.4%) | 10 (43.5) | |
| Her2 | <0.001 | |||
| Positive | 29 (39.2) | 10 (19.6%) | 19 (82.6) | |
| Negative | 45 (60.8) | 41 (80.4%) | 4 (17.4) | |
| Ki-67 | 0.053 | |||
| Low | 16 (21.6) | 13 (25.5%) | 3 (13) | |
| High | 51 (68.9) | 31 (60.8%) | 20 (87) | |
| Intermediate | 7 (9.5) | 7 (13.7%) | 0 | |
| Molecular subtype | <0.001 | |||
| Luminal A | 12 (16.2) | 11 (21.6%) | 1 (4.3) | |
| Luminal B | 28 (37.8) | 26 (51%) | 2 (8.7) | |
| Her2 | 30 (40.5) | 11 (21.6%) | 19 (82.6) | |
| TNBC | 4 (5.4) | 3 (5.9%) | 1 (4.3) | |
| MRI findings | 0.302 | |||
| ME | 44 (59.5) | 30 (18.1%) | 14 (60.9) | |
| NME | 29 (39.2) | 21 (12.7%) | 8 (34.8) | |
| ME +NME | 1 (1.4) | 0 | 1 (4.3) | |
| Baseline ADC* | 0.87 (0.71–0.99) | 0.85 (0.7–0.98) | 0.89 (0.79–1.00) | 0.403 |
| Number of LN on ultrasound | 0.318 | |||
| 1–2 | 45 (60.8) | 33 (64.7%) | 12 (52.2) | |
| >2 | 29 (39.2) | 18 (35.3%) | 11 (47.8) | |
| Tumour size reduction (%)* | 58.8 (21.1–98.6) | 45.9 (17.0–82.6) | 100.0 (32.9–100.0) | 0.020 |
| ADC increase* | 0.9 (0.32–1.31) | 0.7 (0.23–1.24) | 1.1 (0.16–2.9) | 0.058 |
| Tumor and axilla pCR** | 21 (28.4) | 7 (13.7) | 14 (60.9) | <0.001 |
ADC = apparent diffusion coefficient; ALND = axillary lymph node dissection; ER = oestrogen receptor; HER2 = human epidermal growth factor receptor 2; IDC = invasive ductal carcinoma; ILC = invasive lobular carcinoma;LN, lymph node; ME = mass enhancement; NME = non mass enhancement; PR = progesterone receptor;SLNB = sentinel lymph node biopsy; TNBC = triple-negative breast cancer; pCR = pathologic complete response.
p-value of significant difference by chi-square, Fisher exact, Student t-test or Mann–Whitney U test.
Pathologic complete response in the breast and absence of axillary lymph node metastases (ypT0ypN0) Unless otherwise indicated, data are the number of patients, with percentages in parentheses.
Median and interquartile range.