Correlation of histologic grade and lymph node status with some histopathologic discriminants in breast cancer.

In fifty non selected ductal carcinomas of the breast we found that a marked tumoral inflammatory infiltrate (P less than 0.025), perinodal tumoral infiltrate (P less than 0.01), sinus catarrh (P less than 0.05), follicular hyperplasia (P less than 0.025), mixed pattern in lymph nodes (P less than 0.01) and with 54 years of age or younger (P less than 0.01) correlated significantly with lymph node metastases and/or high histologic grade. On the contrary, elastosis (P less than 0.05), scanty or absent inflammatory infiltrate (P less than 0.01), sinus histiocytosis (P less than 0.001) and endothelial hyperplasia were statistically related to low histologic grade and/or lack of metastases. Elastosis is considered a defensive host response. Groups of lymphocytes in the perinodal fat is usually found in metastasized lymph nodes and may indicate metastasis should be sought in a lymph node which otherwise seems to be tumor-free.