Macroscopic characteristics of pleural metastases arising from the breast and observed by diagnostic thoracoscopy.

A study was carried out on 85 patients suffering from breast cancer with pleural effusion. A thoracoscopy was done on each patient, both to establish the etiology of pleurisy and to perform pleurodesis in those patients whose diagnosis was established by other means. In addition to the gathering of general data on each patient, a description is given of the macroscopic characteristics of the effusions, their cytology, and the forms and locations of the pleural metastases. Differences were encountered in the tendency toward pleural metastases according to the different levels involved and to whether the tumor was homolateral or contralateral. Generally, the former exhibited a preference for the costal pleura, whereas contralateral cancers tend to affect the mediastinal pleura. Other data of interest are likewise briefly described.