PROGNOSTIC RELEVANCE OF IMMUNOHISTOLOGY, TUMOR SIZE AND VASCULAR SPACE INVOLVEMENT IN AXILLARY NODE-NEGATIVE BREAST-CANCER

Objective: Adjuvant treatment for patients with axillary node negative (ANN) breast cancer is controversial because operation alone gives a 70% cure rate. Features which predict recurrence are needed and we the refore evaluated the predictive value of tumor diameter and vascular i nvolvement as well as of estrogen receptors (ER), progesterone recepto rs (PR), p53, MIB-1, c-rb and PCNA demonstrated by immunohistological staining in 178 patients with ANN breast cancer. Although ER status, t umor diameter and vascular space involvement were significantly correl ated to the development of recurrence, their sensitivity, specificity and predictive value were too low to give them clinical value.