Neoadjuvant therapy and breast specimen processing and reporting

Abstract Neoadjuvant therapy (NAT) is becoming a common approach to treat breast cancers. The most important advantage of NAT is the opportunity to evaluate the tumor response to treatment within few months after starting the medication. Pathology is the gold standard to determine the post therapy changes and response. An accurate and reproducible pathology report requires a multidisciplinary approach, a standard and appropriate handling of the gross specimen and recognizing the microscopic changes associated with a post NAT specimen. This review focuses on the standard approach for a post NAT breast specimen, based on the available guidelines and other related articles.