Ultrasound-Guided Core Needle Biopsy to Assess Sensitivity and Specificity of Axillary Lymph Node Metastasis in Breast Cancer

May 1, 2026 updated by: Dezhi Zhang, The First Hospital of Jilin University

Sensitivity and Specificity of Ultrasound-Guided Core Needle Biopsy in Evaluating Axillary Lymph Node Metastasis in Breast Cancer

This study plans to find the most suitable lymph node cortex thickness and abnormal lymph node features to define suspicious lymph nodes. Then, ultrasound-guided core needle biopsy of axillary lymph nodes will be done, aiming to provide some guidance for the biopsy.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
200

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Consecutive patients newly diagnosed with primary breast cancer and assessed for axillary lymph node metastasis by ultrasound, prospectively enrolled from November 2025 to November 2026 across multiple hospitals.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. Age ≥18 years and <70 years;
  2. Histologically confirmed primary breast cancer;
  3. Underwent ultrasound examination to assess axillary lymph node metastasis status.

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Presence of other malignancies (e.g., lymphoma, lung cancer, thyroid cancer, etc., with axillary metastasis);
  2. Pregnant or lactating women;
  3. Previous receipt of neoadjuvant radiotherapy or chemotherapy;
  4. Lymph node metastasis status not confirmed by pathology, or time interval between ultrasound examination and pathological confirmation exceeding 6 weeks.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Maximum cortical thickness of the lymph node (mm)
Time Frame: Measurements should be performed prior to treatment initiation, with a time interval not exceeding 4 weeks between the measurement and pathological examination.
The maximum thickness of the lymph node's cortical layer. Measured via conventional ultrasound examination of the lymph node's long-axis cross-section, perpendicular to the capsule surface, determining the maximum distance from the capsule to the corticomedullary junction.
Measurements should be performed prior to treatment initiation, with a time interval not exceeding 4 weeks between the measurement and pathological examination.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Age
Time Frame: Baseline
Age of participants at the time of initial diagnosis of primary breast cancer, reported in years.
Baseline
Menstrual Status
Time Frame: At initial diagnosis of primary breast cancer
Menstrual status at initial diagnosis of primary breast cancer, assessed by medical record review and categorized as premenopausal, perimenopausal, postmenopausal, or unknown.
At initial diagnosis of primary breast cancer
Lymph node axial ratio
Time Frame: Measurements should be performed prior to treatment initiation, with a time interval not exceeding 4 weeks between the measurement and pathological examination.
The ratio of the maximum longitudinal diameter to the maximum transverse diameter of the lymph node. The maximum longitudinal diameter and maximum transverse diameter of the lymph node are measured separately, and the axial ratio is obtained by dividing the measured longitudinal diameter value by the transverse diameter value.
Measurements should be performed prior to treatment initiation, with a time interval not exceeding 4 weeks between the measurement and pathological examination.
Lymph node margin regularity
Time Frame: Measurements should be performed prior to treatment initiation, with a time interval not exceeding 4 weeks between the measurement and pathological examination.
Categorized as either regular or irregular.
Measurements should be performed prior to treatment initiation, with a time interval not exceeding 4 weeks between the measurement and pathological examination.
Lymph node hilum type
Time Frame: Within 4 weeks before pathological examination and prior to treatment initiation
Lymph node hilum type assessed on pre-treatment imaging, categorized according to the presence or absence of the lymph node hilum.
Within 4 weeks before pathological examination and prior to treatment initiation

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
The First Hospital of Jilin University

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
Siping Central People's Hospital
Jilin Central General Hospital
Baicheng Central Hospital

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Estimated)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
October 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
October 1, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
October 1, 2028

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
April 24, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
May 1, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
May 7, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
May 7, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
May 1, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 25K072-001

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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