Abstract:
Objective To investigate the clinicopathological characteristics and prognosis of mucinous micropapillary carcinoma (MUMPC) of the breast.
Methods A total of 192 cases diagnosed as mucinous breast carcinoma in Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital between September 2003 to December 2008 were retrospectively analyzed. Patients were divided into pure mucinous breast carcinoma (PMBC, 101 cases) and mixed mucinous breast carcinoma (MMBC, 91cases). A total of 35 cases of MUMPC were selected in the PMBC group as the experimental group and cases without micropapillary structure were classified as control (pMBC) group. Clinicopathological characteristics and prognosis of MUMPC, MMBC, and pMBC were compared, and the influencing factors were recognized.
Results The rates of patients with axillary lymph node metastasis and Ki-67 labeling index positive were significantly higher in the MUMPC group than in the control group (P < 0.05). The 5-year and 10-year disease-free survival (DFS) rates of all cases were 96.1% and 68.9%, respectively. DFS significantly differed among the three groups. The 5-year DFS rates of the pMBC, MMBC, and MUMPC groups were 100%, 91.9%, and 100%, respectively. By contrast, the corresponding 10-year DFS rates were 91.8%, 56.2%, and 73.0%. N-staging was the independent prognostic factor for MUMPC (P=0.006).
Conclusion The prognosis of MUMPC was worse than pMBC, but better than MMBC. Pathological lymph node-staging was the only one prognostic factor for MUMPC. Patients with worse prognosis acquired positive treatment.