Axillary ultrasound and fine-needle aspiration in preoperative staging of axillary lymph nodes in patients with invasive breast cancer.

Objective: To propose an algorithm to determine the necessity for ultrasonography-guided fine-needle aspiration (US-FNA) in preoperative axillary lymph node staging of patients with invasive breast cancer.

Materials And Methods: Prospective study developed at National Cancer Institute. The study sample included 100 female patients with breast cancer referred for axillary staging by US-FNA.