Abstract
In addition to the former report that has described the method and availability of CT imaging of regional lymphnodes of the breast, this paper offers the outcomes of CT diagnosis in visualizing the metastases in regional lymph nodes including 1a, 1b, 1c, 2, and 3.
1) CT visualization succeeded in 69.3% of all lymph nodes tested. When the lymph nodes were limited to those having diameters of 3mm or more, the figure was increased to 81.4%. 20 CT diagnosis of lymph node metastasis was rated as "accuracy" in 76.2%, "sensitivity" in 76.0%, or "specificity" in 76.5%. 3) CT diagnosis resulted in false-negative in 6 (31.6%) cases, but all the 6 cases were categorized into n1α (less than 3 metastases) and included no cases with n1β or severer. 4) In regions where metastasized lesions could not be palpated, CT succeeded in correctly diagnosing with so favorable rates as 90.2% in 1c; 87.2% in 2; and 66.7% in 3, which were similar in axillary resions.
These findings have suggested that preoperative diagnosis with CT can be used in whole regional lymph nodes of the breast, with clinically appreciable, results.
