Hepatectomy for liver metastases from breast cancer.

Thirty-two selected patients underwent laparotomy in an attempt to resect one or more isolated liver metastases (LM) from breast cancer. Only 21 of them had hepatectomy and systematic lymph node picking of the hepatic pedicle. In six patients (19%), the discovery of diffuse metastatic disease contraindicated hepatectomy and in five patients (16%), the diagnosis of LM was erroneous, for lesions proved to be benign liver tumours.