Purpose: To explore the clinical application value of color Doppler ultrasound combined with computed tomography (CT) in the diagnosis of axillary lymph node metastasis (ALNM) in breast cancer.
Methods: From January 2016 to June 2018, 189 breast cancer patients who underwent radical mastectomy in our hospital were included and retrospectively analyzed. All patients had preoperative color Doppler ultrasound and CT examination of mammary gland and axillary lymph nodes, with pathological diagnosis as the gold standard. Eighty-eight cases were divided into axillary lymph node metastasis group (metastatic group) and 101 cases formed the non-axillary lymph node metastasis group (non-metastatic group). The ultrasound and CT imaging of axillary lymph nodes were analyzed to evaluate the value of color Doppler ultrasound combined with CT in the assessment of axillary lymph node metastasis in breast cancer.
Results: Ultrasonographic metastatic lymph nodes showed unclear borders and eccentric thickening of the cortex. The enhancement scan showed obvious heterogeneous enhancement and disappearance of lymphatic structure. The sensitivity, accuracy, and negative predictive value of ultrasonography combined with CT were 92.05%, 90.48% and 92.78%, retrospectively, which were significantly improved compared with those in the individual tests (x2=13.41, 6.126, 8.933, p=0.001, 0.047, 0.011), with significant statistical difference.
Conclusions: Color Doppler ultrasound combined with CT examination can significantly improve the detected rate of axillary lymph node metastasis in breast cancer before surgery, and provide a reliable basis for the treatment options on breast cancer patients before surgery.