Expectant management concerning the breast in 5 patients with occult breast carcinoma

Five women, between 53 and 78 years old, had axillary lymph node disseminations without a primary breast tumour being found at clinical and radiological investigations. There is much uncertainty about the treatment to be applied in such cases. The patients' breasts were left untreated. One patient had a manifest breast tumour after 6 months' follow-up. The other four patients did not show any sign of a primary tumour after a median follow-up of 26 months (21-96). An expectative policy has already found support in medical literature. The axilla should preferably be treated with axillary lymph node dissection.