Central venous port placement: a comparison of axillary versus anterior chest wall placement.

Background: To compare morbidity in patients with surgically implanted central venous ports that were placed in the subcutaneous tissues of the mid axillary line at the anterior border of the latissimus muscle (group A) versus the anterior chest wall (group C).

Methods: Between 2003 and 2007, a total of 183 patients with breast cancer were taken to the operating room for central venous port placement for delivery of chemotherapy. Port location was determined by patient and surgeon preference.

Cutaneous melanoma: update on prevention, screening, diagnosis, and treatment.

Melanoma is an increasingly common malignancy, and it affects a younger population than most cancers. Risk factors for melanoma include white race, sun sensitivity, family history of melanoma, and melanocytic nevi. Sunburn and intermittent sun exposure appear to increase the risk of developing melanoma.

High-resolution axillary ultrasound is a poor prognostic test for determining pathologic lymph node status in patients undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy for locally advanced breast cancer.

Background: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of high-resolution axillary ultrasound in detecting axillary lymph node metastases after neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with locally advanced breast cancer.

Methods: Fifty-three patients with stage II or III breast cancer undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy who had a physical examination, high-resolution axillary ultrasound, and axillary lymph node dissection from January 1999 to September 2003 were included in this study.

Results: The positive predictive value of the postchemotherapy ultrasound for predicting pathologic nodal involvement was 83%, but the negative predictive value was only 52%.