Factors related to axillary lymph node metastasis in T1 breast carcinoma

The current study was performed on 38 cases of T1 breast cancers ( 2 cm in greatest diameter) to identify the factors related to recognition of axillary lymph node (AxLN) metastasis. Ten patients (26.3%) had lymph node metastases. Comparing the AxLN positive (+) group with the AxLN negative (-) group revealed that tumor size and hormone receptor status as well as age of the patients were not significantly different. However, the Ki-67 labeling index (22.2 +/- 5. 9% vs. 12.5 +/- 2.8%), the microvessel count (43.8 +/- 12.4/0.785 mm2 vs. 27.0 +/- 8.4/0.785 mm2) and bcl-2+ cases (70% vs. 29%) were significantly higher in the AxLN+ cases. These results suggest that the Ki-67 labeling index, microvessel count and Bcl-2 expression, especially when combined, are useful predictors of AxLN metastases in T1 breast cancers.