Significance of liver metastasis in women with disseminated breast cancer undergoing endocrine ablative surgery

Abstract

The extent of liver metastasis and subsequent response to endocrine ablations in 99 women with disseminated mammary cancer were studied. The incidence of liver metastasis at the time of treatment was 38% in the 45 postmenopausal patients who underwent adrenalectomy and 31% in the 54 premenopausal patients who underwent therapeutic oophorectomy. Response to endocrine ablation in patients with liver metastases depended largely on the extent to which the liver was involved. Patients with extensive liver metastases rarely responded to either adrenalectomy or oophorectomy. When the extent of liver metastasis was limited, the response was not influenced. These results demonstrate that liver metastasis itself is not the determining factor; rather, the extent of the liver metastasis governs the response rate to endocrine ablative therapy. At present, it is not possible to make an early diagnosis of liver metastasis by either clinical or laboratory studies. Biochemical parameters of liver function, however, are useful in the diagnosis of advanced liver metastases and in the assessment of response to endocrine ablative procedures. Among the biochemical liver profiles, SGOT, alkaline phosphatase and BSP excretion are the most useful tests for liver metastases. Copyright © 1966 American Cancer Society