Breast Cancer Staging: Updates in the AJCC Cancer Staging Manual, 8th Edition, and Current Challenges for Radiologists, From the AJR Special Series on Cancer Staging

Abstract

The standardization of the AJCC TNM staging system for breast cancer allows physicians to evaluate patients with breast cancer using standard language and criteria, assess treatment response, and compare patient outcomes. Previous editions of the AJCC Cancer Staging Manual relied on the anatomic TNM method of staging that incorporates imaging and uses population-level survival data to predict patient outcomes. Recent advances in therapy based on biomarker status and multigene panels have improved treatment strategies. In the newest edition of the AJCC Cancer Staging Manual (8th edition, adopted on January 1, 2018), breast cancer staging integrates anatomic staging with tumor grade, biomarker data regarding hormone receptor status, oncogene expression, and gene expression profiling to assign a prognostic stage. This article reviews the 8th edition of the AJCC breast cancer staging system with a focus on anatomic staging and the challenges that anatomic staging poses for radiologists. We highlight key imaging findings that impact patient treatment and discuss the role of imaging in evaluating response to neoadjuvant therapy. Finally, we discuss biomarkers and multigene panels and how these impact prognostic stage. The review will help radiologists identify critical findings that affect breast cancer staging and understand ongoing limitations of imaging in staging.

Keywords: MRI; breast cancer; mammography; staging; ultrasound.