Preoperative intraarterial (IA) cisplatin (CDP) was administered to 92 patients with nonmetastatic osteosarcoma. The ages of the patients ranged from 4 to 28 years. Sixty-four patients (70%) received 2 or 3 preoperative courses and 28 (30%) received 4 or more. Sixty-two specimens were available for pathologic examination to assess the degree of tumor necrosis. More than 90% tumor destruction was observed in 16 of 42 patients (38%) who received 1 to 3 preoperative courses as opposed to 17 of 20 (85%) who received 4 or more courses. Patients who received 4 or more courses had a 2-fold probability of achieving more than 90% tumor necrosis, and 68% underwent conservative surgery. Of those who received 3 or less courses, 23% underwent conservative surgery. Postoperatively, patients were treated with intravenous (IV) CDP alternating with doxorubicin (ADR) (Adriamycin, Adria Laboratories, Columbus, OH). Pulmonary metastases developed in 36 patients, bone metastases in 2, and local recurrence in 6. Two patients died of cardiac failure without evidence of disease. Thus, 46 patients (50%) were continuously free of disease 18 to 78 months after diagnosis. Univariate and multivariate analyses showed that male sex, low grade preoperative chemotherapy-induced necrosis, and nonosteoblastic histologic condition were prognostic factors predictive of recurrence, while male sex and large tumor size were prognostic factors predictive of death. These results are comparable with those reported by other centers and are superior to our previous experiences that yielded survival rates of 5% to 10%. A substantial number of patients also had the opportunity to achieve tumor removal with conservative surgery.

Breast metastases from extramammary cancers are rare and usually related to poor prognosis. The extramammary tumours most frequently exhibiting breast metastases are melanoma, lymphomas, ovarian cancer, lung and neuroendocrine tumours, and sarcomas. Owing to the lack of reliable and specific clinical or radiological signs for the diagnosis of breast metastases, a combination of techniques is needed to differentiate these lesions from primary breast carcinoma or even benign breast lesions. Multiple imaging methods may be used to evaluate these patients, including mammography, ultrasound, MRI, CT and positron emission tomography CT. Clinical and imaging manifestations are varied, depend on the form of dissemination of the disease and may mimic primary benign and malignant breast lesions. Haematologically disseminated metastases often develop as a circumscribed mass, whereas lymphatic dissemination often presents as diffuse breast oedema and skin thickening. Unlike primary carcinomas, breast metastases generally do not have spiculated margins, skin or nipple retraction. Microlobulated or indistinct margins may be present in some cases. Although calcifications are not frequently present in metastatic lesions, they occur more commonly in patients with ovarian cancer. Although rare, secondary malignant neoplasms should be considered in the differential diagnosis of breast lesions, in the appropriate clinical setting. Knowledge of the most common imaging features can help to provide the correct diagnosis and adequate therapeutic planning.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the capacity of diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DW-MRI) for early prediction of pathological response in breast cancer patients undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NCT). This prospective unicentric study evaluated 62 patients who underwent NCT. MRI was performed prior to the start of treatment (MR1), after the first NCT cycle (MR2), and upon completion of NCT (MR3). Pathological response was used as the gold-standard. Patients’ median age was 45.5 years and the median tumor size was 40 mm. Twenty-four (38.7%) tumors presented complete pathological response (pCR). The percent increase in apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) value between MR1 and MR2 was higher in the pCR group (p < 0.001). When the minimum increase in ADC between MR1 and MR2 was set at 25%, sensitivity was 83%, specificity was 84%, positive predictive value was 77%, negative predictive value was 89%, and accuracy was 84% for an early prediction of pCR to NCT. Meanwhile, there were no significant changes in major tumor dimensions between MR1 and MR2. In conclusion, an increase in ADC after the first cycle of NCT correlates well with pCR after the chemotherapy in our cohort, precedes reduction in tumor size on conventional MRI, and may therefore be used as an early predictor of treatment response.

MRI features of both types of mucinous breast carcinomas are discussed, illustrated, and compared with pathologic findings and with other imaging methods, including mammography, ultrasound, and PET/CT.

ObjectiveTo assess the role of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the planning of breast cancer treatment strategies.Materials and MethodsThe study included 160 women diagnosed with breast cancer, who underwent breast MRI for preoperative staging. Using Pearson's correlation coefficient (r), we compared the size of the primary tumor, as determined by MRI, by conventional imaging (mammography and ultrasound), and in the pathological examination (gold standard). The identification of lesions not identified in previous examinations was also evaluated, as was its influence on treatment planning.ResultsThe mean age of the patients was 52.2 years (range, 30–81 years), and the most common histological type was invasive ductal carcinoma (in 60.6% of the patients). In terms of the tumor size determined, MRI correlated better with the pathological examination than did mammography (r = 0.872 vs. 0.710) or ultrasound (r = 0.836 vs. 0.704). MRI identified additional lesions in 53 patients (33.1%), including malignant lesions in 20 (12.5%), which led to change in the therapeutic planning in 23 patients (14.4%).ConclusionBreast MRI proved to be more accurate than conventional imaging in determining the dimensions of the main tumor and was able to identify lesions not identified by other methods evaluated, which altered the therapeutic planning in a significant proportion of cases.