Bone marrow micrometastasis in breast cancer

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Abstract
Background Several studies have demonstrated that bone marrow micrometastasis in patients with breast cancer is an independent prognostic factor for systemic recurrence and poorer survival. Methods This review describes the detection and clinical significance of micrometastatic cells in bone marrow, and examines the correlation between such micrometastasis and established clinicopathological prognostic factors. The relevant English language literature on bone marrow micrometastasis in breast cancer was searched via Medline (1975–2002), cross-referencing with key articles on the subject. Results and conclusion The balance of evidence favours the hypothesis that bone marrow micrometastasis impacts on disease-free and overall survival. Further prospective studies are required to examine this in greater detail, with particular reference to early node-negative breast cancer and the value of adjuvant systemic therapy in patients with bone marrow micrometastasis.