Pathology reporting is evolving from a traditional narrative report to a more structured synoptic report. Narrative reporting can cause misinterpretation due to lack of information and structure. In this systematic review, we evaluate the impact of synoptic reporting on completeness of pathology reports and quality of pathology evaluation for solid tumours. Pubmed, Embase and Cochrane databases were systematically searched to identify studies describing the effect of synoptic reporting implementation on completeness of reporting and quality of pathology evaluation of solid malignant tumours. Thirty-three studies met the inclusion criteria. All studies, except one, reported an increased overall completeness of pathology reports after introduction of synoptic reporting (SR). Most frequently studied cancers were breast (n = 9) and colorectal cancer (n = 16). For breast cancer, narrative reports adequately described ‘tumour type’ and ‘nodal status’. Synoptic reporting resulted in improved description of ‘resection margins’, ‘DCIS size’, ‘location’ and ‘presence of calcifications’. For colorectal cancer, narrative reports adequately reported ‘tumour type’, ‘invasion depth’, ‘lymph node counts’ and ‘nodal status’. Synoptic reporting resulted in increased reporting of ‘circumferential margin’, ‘resection margin’, ‘perineural invasion’ and ‘lymphovascular invasion’. In addition, increased numbers of reported lymph nodes were found in synoptic reports. Narrative reports of other cancer types described the traditional parameters adequately, whereas for ‘resection margins’ and ‘(lympho)vascular/perineural invasion’, implementation of synoptic reporting was necessary. Synoptic reporting results in improved reporting of clinical relevant data. Demonstration of clinical impact of this improved method of pathology reporting is required for successful introduction and implementation in daily pathology practice.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00428-016-1935-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

The main determinant of cosmetic outcomes following breast-conserving surgery (BCS) for breast cancer is the volume of resection. The importance of achieving optimal oncological control may lead to an unnecessarily large resection of breast tissue. The aim of this study is to evaluate excess resection volume in BCS for cancer by determining a calculated resection ratio (CRR). This retrospective study was conducted in four affiliated institutions and involved 726 consecutive patients with T1-T2 invasive breast cancer treated by BCS between January 2006 and 2009. The pathology reports were reviewed for tumor palpability, tumor size, surgical specimen size, and oncological margin status. The optimal resection volume (ORV) was defined as the spherical tumor volume with an added 1.0 cm margin of healthy breast tissue. The total resection volume (TRV) was defined as the ellipsoid volume of the surgical specimen. CRR was determined by dividing the TRV by the ORV. Of all tumors, 72% (525/726) were palpable, and 28% (201/726) were nonpalpable. The tumor stage was T1 in 492 patients (67.8%) and T2 in 234 patients (32.2%). The median CRR was 2.5 (0.01-42.93). Margin status was positive or focally positive in 153 patients (21.1%). Lower tumor stage was associated with a higher CRR (factor 0.61 [p < 0.0001] and a lower positive margin rate [p = 0.064]). Accordingly, the median CRR of the nonpalpable lesions was higher than that of the palpable lesions (3.1 and 2.2, respectively; p < 0.01), and the involved margin rate was lower (17.4% and 22.5%, respectively; p = 0.13). Of patients with a CRR >4.0, 10.7% still had tumor involved margins. This study clearly shows that BCS is associated with excessive resection of healthy breast tissue while clear margins are not assured. Surgical factors should be modified to improve surgical accuracy.

PURPOSE The use of standardized structured reporting (SSR) can improve communication between cancer specialists, which might improve clinical care; however, there are no reliable data on whether the introduction of SSR is associated with improvements in clinical outcome. PATIENTS AND METHODS We performed a retrospective cohort study in the Netherlands, including all patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) from 2009 to 2014. As a reference, cohorts of 2007 and 2008 were included. Data from the Netherlands Cancer Registry were used and combined with data from the Dutch Pathology Registry (PALGA) and the Dutch ColoRectal Audit. We tested the preformulated hypothesis that use of SSR improves the care of patients with CRC by improving the completeness of the pathology reports, the quality of the pathology evaluation, and patient outcomes with respect to treatment and survival. RESULTS We included 72,859 patients with CRC (23.8% reference, 32.9% SSR, and 43.3% narrative reports). Use of SSR increased over time, which resulted in more complete pathology reports (95.8% v 89.8%; P < .001). Risk assessment in stage II colon cancer was more adequate and resulted in an increased delivery of adjuvant therapy in patients with SSR (19.6% v 15.1%; P = .001). Risk of death for patients in the SSR group was significantly lowered (corrected hazard ratio, 0.94; 95% CI 0.90 to 0.97). CONCLUSION We demonstrate that use of SSR improved patient care in those with CRC by providing more complete reports of higher quality, which had significant effects on the delivery of adjuvant therapy and patient outcomes.

Objective: The aim was to compare the (sentinel) lymph node detection rate of indocyanine green (ICG)-fluorescent imaging versus standard-of-care 99mTc-nanocoilloid for sentinel lymph node (SLN)-mapping. Background: The current gold standard for axillary staging in patients with breast cancer is sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) using radio-guided surgery using radioisotope technetium (99mTc), sometimes combined with blue dye. A promising alternative is fluorescent imaging using ICG. Methods: In this noninferiority trial, we enrolled 102 consecutive patients with invasive early-stage, clinically node-negative breast cancer. Patients were planned for breast conserving surgery and SLNB between August 2020 and June 2021. The day or morning before surgery, patients were injected with 99mTc-nanocolloid. In each patient, SLNB was first performed using ICG-fluorescent imaging, after which excised lymph nodes were tested with the gamma-probe for 99mTc-uptake ex vivo, and the axilla was checked for residual 99mTc-activity. The detection rate was defined as the proportion of patients in whom at least 1 (S)LN was detected with either tracer. Results: In total, 103 SLNBs were analyzed. The detection rate of ICG-fluorescence was 96.1% [95% confidence interval (95% CI)=90.4%–98.9%] versus 86.4% (95% CI=78.3%–92.4%) for 99mTc-nanocoilloid. The detection rate for pathological lymph nodes was 86.7% (95% CI=59.5%–98.3%) for both ICG and 99mTc-nanocoilloid. A median of 2 lymph nodes were removed. ICG-fluorescent imaging did not increase detection time. No adverse events were observed. Conclusions: ICG-fluorescence showed a higher (S)LN detection rate than 99mTc-nanocoilloid, and equal detection rate for pathological (S)LNs. ICG-fluorescence may be used as a safe and effective alternative to 99mTc-nanocoilloid for SLNB in patients with early-stage breast cancer.

The incidence of duodenopancreatic nonfunctional neuroendocrine tumors in The Netherlands increased over 1991 to 2009. The etiology for this change includes improved diagnostic techniques and clinical awareness, as discussed.