The AAPS 101st Annual Meeting

Alternative Patterns of Superficial Lymphatic Drainage in the Breast and Trunk after Breast Cancer Surgery

Background:

•ICG-lymphangiography has been instrumental in characterizing lymphatic dysfunction.

•The Trunk Lymphedema Staging System (TLSS) characterizes affected areas.

•We used alternative lymphatic flow to identify risk/protective factors for truncal and upper extremity lymphedema development.

Methods:

•46 patients between 12/2014 and 1/2022.

•2 reviewers blindly evaluated ICG lymphangiography videos.

•Linear-weighted Cohen’s Kappa statistics used to evaluate reviewer agreement.

Conclusions:

•Ipsilateral axillary and contralateral inguinal drainage are protective against truncal lymphedema.

•Contralateral axillary drainage and radiation therapy are risk factors for truncal lymphedema development.

•TLSS has clinical implications for post-operative development of infection and determining lymphovenous bypass eligibility.

Alternative Patterns Of Superficial Lymphatic Drainage In The Breast And Trunk After Breast Cancer Surgery