Neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) refers to the use of systemic chemotherapy-based treatment prior to surgical treatment. NACT is an increasingly utilized option for the treatment of invasive breast carcinomas—particularly those which are locally advanced. As such, surgical pathologists are being ever more tasked with evaluating breast carcinoma specimens status-post NACT. These specimens include needle core biopsies and excisions as well as mastectomies. At this time, there is no universally agreed upon protocol for the evaluation and reporting of such specimens. Pathologists face multiple difficulties in handling such specimens, including those relating to correlation with imaging studies, gross examination, sampling, reporting, assessing residual tumor burden, etc. This Course will aim at offering practical guidance for evaluation and reporting of breast specimens after NACT. Issues relating to the current staging and reporting systems will be discussed. Pragmatic solutions to commonly encountered clinical problems will be offered. The Course will be case based, and each case will depict a particular potential problem in handling such specimens.
This session offers 1.0 CME/CMLE credit.
Faculty/Authors
Physician Competencies: Patient Care, Medical Knowledge
CME/CMLE Credit: 1.0
Estimated Completion Time: 1 hour
Format: Online Educational Activity
Accreditation Statement: The American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP) is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education (CME) for physicians. This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the Essential Areas and Policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME).
Credit Designation Statement: The American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP) designates this journal-based CME activity for a maximum of 1 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Instructions
To claim CME/CMLE credit for the exercise, do the following:
- Review the Technical Considerations.
- Review the Faculty Disclosures.
- Click Go to Course to view an overview of the modules in this course.
- Click Access to begin the course.
- Submit the course Evaluation.
- Enter the maximum number of credits offered and click Claim CME to register credit.
Faculty Disclosure
Technical Considerations
Release Date: 11/20/2025
Review Date:
Expiration Date: