Pleural effusion in breast cancer. Thoracoscopy for hormone receptor determination

Metastatic breast cancer frequently presents as a malignant pleural effusion. Knowledge of the estrogen and progesterone receptor status of the tumor predicts response to hormonal therapy, but breast cancer tissue in the pleural space is not readily accessible for hormone receptor determination. Thoracoscopy was used in six breast cancer patients with pleural effusions; all but one had concurrent sites of metastases. In five of six women …