Objective: To assess whether the number of lymph nodes (LN) in breast cancer (BC) patients undergoing axillary dissection (AD) after neoadjuvant chemotherapy affects disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS).
Methods: Descriptive, retrospective, longitudinal cut-off study (2011–2020).
Results: 391 patients, 176 patients in the <10 LNs group and 215 ≥10 dissected LGs. The mean number of dissected nodes was 6.2 and 13.8 in the < or ≥ 10 LN groups, respectively. The <10 LN group had a higher proportion of stage IIIB (p = 0.012) and ypN0 (p = 0.001) patients and higher frequency in the phenotypes: luminal A 23.5%, TN 24.1% and HER 2 18.7% when compared with patients with ≥10 LN. Patients with ≥10 LN retrieved had a higher mean OS compared to the group of patients <10 LN with no statistical association (p = 0.184) (hazard ratio = 1.91 95% CI: 0.73–4.98) and a survival probability at 120 months (both groups) of 96.2%. There was also no statistical difference in the DFS when comparing the two groups of patients, indicating that the number of nodes removed is not associated with a differential risk of relapse, with a survival probability at 120 months of 63.3%.
Conclusion: The results of the study indicate that the number of nodes removed during AD does not affect survival (OS and EFS) in patients with neoadjuvant (ypN0/ypN+) BC. Axillary staging remains a key factor in the management of BC; therefore, an individualised approach considering the response to triple negative breast cancer and tumour burden in therapeutic decision making is recommended.
