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Cancer Screening, Diagnosis and Care

European guidelines on breast cancer screening and diagnosis


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10. Staging

Stage 3: conventional exams

Issued on: September 2018

Healthcare question

Should conventional staging exams vs. no staging exams be used for patients with clinical stage III breast cancer without symptoms suggestive of metastases?

Recommendation

The ECIBC's Guidelines Development Group (GDG) recommends using conventional staging exams with imaging in women with clinical stage III breast cancer.

Recommendation strength

Strong recommendation
Moderate certainty of the evidence

Subgroup considerations

The GDG also notes that age and presence of comorbidities of the patient may be a consideration in the decision of whether to conduct staging exams with imaging as this may change the choice of treatment.

Considerations for implementation and policy making

The GDG considered the definition of stage groups according to the American Joint Commission on Cancer TNM Anatomic Stage Groups (8th ed.) listed in the ECIBC glossary. 

Monitoring and evaluation

The GDG suggests monitoring that women with clinical stage III breast cancer receive staging exams using imaging. 

Research priorities

  • The GDG suggests research assessing the cause of false positive cases to minimize the number of false positives and the undue stress that this poses on patients with clinical stage III breast cancer.
  • The GDG suggests research on non-ionizing and low-radiation dose alternatives for staging exams using imaging.

Supporting material

yes