Molecular Marker Profiling of Axillary Lymph Nodes in Predicting Response in Patients With Locally Advanced or Metastatic Breast Cancer Who Are Undergoing Chemotherapy Followed By Surgery

OBJECTIVES: Primary * Determine whether molecular markers in pretreatment axillary lymph node metastases can predict pathologic response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with locally advanced or early metastatic breast cancer. Secondary * Compare molecular markers in axillary lymph node metastases with those in the primary breast tumor (obtained in protocol UNC-LCCC-9819) in patients treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy. * Determine changes in molecular markers in lymph nodes before and after treatment with neoadjuvant chemotherapy in these patients. * Determine the proportion of clinical axillary lymph node-negative patients who have histopathologically node-positive disease identified by sentinel lymph node biopsy. * Determine the rate of breast preservation in patients with large breast cancers treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by fludeoxyglucose F 18 positron emission tomography probe-guided surgical resection. OUTLINE: Patients undergo open surgical biopsy of axillary lymph nodes OR intraoperative lymphatic mapping and sentinel lymphadenectomy for clinically node-positive or clinically node-negative disease, respectively, before and after neoadjuvant chemotherapy. The axillary lymph node tissue is examined for molecular and protein markers by immunohistochemistry and fluorescence in situ hybridization. Patients also undergo fludeoxyglucose F 18 positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) once before and then once after neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Beginning 1 hour before surgery, patients receive an injection of FDG and then undergo conventional segmental mastectomy (lumpectomy) with or without needle localization followed by FDG-PET probe-guided surgical resection of any remaining FDG-avid tumor tissue. PROJECTED ACCRUAL: A total of 100 patients will be accrued for this study within 5 years.