Skip to main content

Table 6 Description of the margin status of the BCS specimen and the re-resection margin status of the nine standardized re-resection margin specimens at the time of the original BCS procedure for all 204 BCS cases, as well as the description of the frequency of patients undergoing a subsequent re-excision breast procedure and the frequency of finding residual disease within those subsequent re-excision breast procedure specimens

From: Standardized and reproducible methodology for the comprehensive and systematic assessment of surgical resection margins during breast-conserving surgery for invasive breast cancer

Description of margin variables for original BCS procedure

Status of margin variables for original BCS specimen

Frequency of a subsequent re-excision

Frequency of residual disease

Positive BCS specimen margin(s)

13/204 (6.4%)

7/13 (53.8%)#,£

2/7 (28.6%)

Close BCS specimen margin(s)

9/204 (4.4%)

4/9 (44.4%)¶

2/4 (50.0%)

Positive or close BCS specimen margin(s)

22/204 (10.8%)

11/22 (50.0%)Ω ,£

4/11 (36.4%)

Negative BCS specimen margins

182/204 (89.2%)

0/182 (0%)

not applicable

Positive re-resection margin(s)

24/204 (11.8%)

15/24 (62.5%)* ,±, Ø, ♀

4/15 (26.7%)

Positive BCS specimen margin(s) AND positive re-resection margin(s)

8/204 (3.9%)

7/8 (87.5%)£

2/7 (28.6%)

Close BCS specimen margin(s) AND positive re-resection margin(s)

3/204 (1.5%)

3/3 (100%)

1/3 (33.3%)

Positive or close BCS specimen margin(s) AND positive re-resection margin(s)

11/204 (5.4)

10/11 (90.9%)£

3/10 (30.0%)

Positive BCS specimen margin(s) AND negative re-resection margins

5/204 (2.5%)

0/5 (0%)#

not applicable

Close BCS specimen margin(s) AND negative re-resection margins

6/204 (2.9%)

1/6 (16.7%)¶

1/1 (100%)

Positive or close BCS specimen margin(s) AND negative re-resection margins

11/204 (5.4%)

1/11 (9.1%)Ω

1/1 (100%)

Negative BCS specimen margins AND positive re-resection margin(s)

13/204 (6.4%)@

5/13 (38.5%)* ,±

0/5 (0%)

Negative BCS specimen margins AND negative re-resection margins

169/204 (82.8%)

0/169 (0%)

not applicable

Positive BCS specimen margin(s) AND/OR close BCS specimen margin(s) AND/OR positive re-resection margin(s)

35/204 (17.2%)

16/35 (45.7%)Ω, *, ±, Ø

5/16 (31.3%)

  1. BCS, breast-conserving surgery
  2. #: Five patients with a positive BCS specimen margin declined a subsequent re-excision procedure due to the finding of nine negative standardized re-resection margins.
  3. ¶: Five patients with a close BCS specimen margin declined a subsequent re-excision procedure due to the finding of nine negative standardized re-resection margins.
  4. £: One patient refused the recommendation of the surgeon for the absolute need of a subsequent re-excision procedure.
  5. Ω: Ten patients with a positive or close BCS specimen margin declined a subsequent re-excision procedure due to the finding of nine negative standardized re-resection margins.
  6. *: Five patients declined a subsequent re-excision procedure due to the finding of one isolated positive standardized re-resection margin out of nine standardized re-resection margins in which the noncauterized surface (i.e., actual true margin surface) of that standardized re-resection margin was free of tumor and therefore was considered a microscopically negative final margin.
  7. ±: Three patients refused the recommendation of the surgeon for the absolute need of a subsequent re-excision procedure.
  8. Ø: One patient declined a subsequent re-excision procedure due to the finding of in situ carcinoma within one standardized re-resection margin for which it could not be distinguished as to whether it represented lobular carcinoma in situ versus ductal carcinoma in situ.
  9. ♀: Eight of nine patients with multiple positive standardized re-resection margins agreed to a subsequent re-excision procedure.
  10. @: 7.1% (13/182) of patients with negative BCS specimen margins had at least one re-resection margin containing additional tumor.
Back to article page

BMC Cancer

ISSN: 1471-2407

Contact us