Abstract: Neoadjuvant chemotherapy or neoadjuvant chemotherapy in combination with targeted therapy has been widely accepted as the standard treatment for locally advanced breast cancer (Ⅱb-Ⅲ). Nearly forty percent of the patients who accepted neoadjuvant chemotherapy achieved pathological complete response of axillary lymph nodes in addition to downstage the primary lesions. However, for patients with clinical complete response of lymph nodes after pre-operative systemic therapy, there are constant controversies regarding the prediction of axillary lymph nodes response and sentinel lymph nodes biopsy after the treatment. Here we design to review the latest studies about how to evaluate the axillary lymph nodes response after neoadjuvant chemotherapy and try to enlighten the treatment choices in clinical practice.

Key words: Neoadjuvant chemotherapy, Axillary lymph nodes, Pathological complete response, Sentinel lymph nodes biopsy, Marking lymph nodes