Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42011085›Full record

ReviewHistopathology2026

World Health Organization classification of tumours of the breast 6th edition 2026.

Cecily Quinn, Puay Hoon Tan, Kimberly H Allison, Edi Brogi, Sunil R Lakhani, Stuart J Schnitt, Stephen B Fox, Shabnam Jaffer, Aysegul Sahin, Roberto Salgado and 19 more

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Histopathology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

29 authors.

Cecily QuinnDepartment of Histopathology, St. Vincent's University Hospital and University College, Dublin, Ireland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8920-5480
Puay Hoon TanDepartment of Pathology, Luma Medical Centre, Singapore, Singapore.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1405-2878
Kimberly H AllisonDepartment of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1776-0503
Edi BrogiDepartment of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York City, New York, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4737-8468
Sunil R LakhaniDepartment of Pathology, University of Queensland Centre for Clinical Research, Pathology Queensland and Sullivan Nicolaides Pathology, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4067-2760
Stuart J SchnittDepartment of Pathology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3608-7828
Stephen B FoxDepartment of Pathology, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and Collaborative Centre Genomic Cancer Medicine, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7648-8896
Shabnam JafferDepartment of Pathology, Northwell Health Lenox Hill Hospital, New York City, New York, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9843-7427
Aysegul SahinDepartment of Pathology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8259-9624
Roberto SalgadoDepartment of Pathology, ZAS Hospitals, Antwerpen, Belgium.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1110-3801
Anna SapinoDepartment of Pathology, Candiolo Cancer Institute, FPO-IRCCS, Candiolo, Torino, Italy.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3542-9571
Ernest Kwasi AdjeiDepartment of Anatomic Pathology, Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Kumasi, Ghana.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4004-3334
Katherine GeiersbachDepartment of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0424-7572
Thomas H HelbichDepartment of Biomedical Imaging and Image-Guided Therapy, Division of General and Paediatric Radiology, Medical University of Vienna/General Hospital, Vienna, Austria.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3169-778X
Matteo LambertiniDepartment of Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties (DIMI), School of Medicine, University of Genova, Genoa, Italy.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1797-5296
Christos SotiriouDepartment of Medical Oncology, Institut Jules Bordet, Brussels, Belgium.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5745-9977
Jennelle C HodgeDepartment of Medical and Molecular Genetics, and IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center, Indiana University, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1770-4042
Joseph D KhouryDepartment of Pathology, Microbiology, and Immunology, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2621-3584
Bharat RekhiDepartment of Pathology, Tata Memorial Centre, Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI) University, Mumbai, India.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3509-4794
Ales RyskaThe Fingerland Department of Pathology, University Hospital Hradec Kralove, Hradec Kralove, Czechia.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3051-2280
Gary TseDepartment of Anatomical and Cellular Pathology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9405-9665
Andrew FieldDepartment of Anatomical Pathology, St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9604-4507
Harshima WijesingheInternational Agency for Research on Cancer, World Health Organization, Lyon, France.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2847-1440
Pavitratha PuspanathanInternational Agency for Research on Cancer, World Health Organization, Lyon, France.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8672-0022
Christine GiesenInternational Agency for Research on Cancer, World Health Organization, Lyon, France.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5026-9724
Blanca Iciar Indave RuizInternational Agency for Research on Cancer, World Health Organization, Lyon, France.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0259-4781
Ian EllisDepartment of Histopathology, Nottingham University Hospitals, Nottingham, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5292-8474
Dilani LokuhettyInternational Agency for Research on Cancer, World Health Organization, Lyon, France.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4275-3436
WCT Standing Editorial Board

Funding

X-RAY CRYSTALLOGRAPHYP30CA008748 · NCI · SLOAN-KETTERING INSTITUTE FOR CANCER RES · PI SELWYN M VICKERS · 1985 to 2026
$347.4M
Cancer Centre Support Grant of the National Institutes of Health/National Cancer Institute P30CA0087478NCI NIH HHS P30 CA008748
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The 6th edition of the WHO Classification of Breast Tumours introduces both major and minor changes based on recent advances in our understanding of breast biology, developments in diagnostic modalities, identification of specific molecular targets and new treatment regimens necessitating modifications to pathology reporting and tumour biomarker categorisation. This review summarises the main changes that strive towards a classification of global relevance. In invasive carcinoma, predictive factors increasingly inform modern breast cancer treatment. The 6th edition provides an update on HER2 reporting categories following the DESTINY-Breast 04 and 06 trials. Terminologies used to classify invasive tumours are clarified, with the term 'variant' now reserved for molecular/genetic alterations. Invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC) with extracellular mucin is recognised as a new diagnostic entity with prognostic implications. The diagnosis of mucinous carcinoma (MC) is reserved for mucin secreting carcinomas with grade 1 or 2 morphology and a favourable biomarker profile. The diagnosis of malignant phyllodes tumours requires only four of the original five adverse histological criteria. Classification of neuroendocrine tumours (NETs) is revised, recognising that the unified model, promoted in the 5th edition, is difficult to apply to the breast. New approaches to the classification of adenomyoepithelioma are discussed but the 5th edition system is broadly retained. A new section on 'Small Diagnostic Samples' outlines the merits of non-operative biopsy diagnosis, the B coding system and the importance of multidisciplinary review. Changes to diagnostic practice and the emerging role of artificial intelligence, with advantages and challenges, are discussed in a new section on 'Digital Pathology'.

Indexed as

Breast NeoplasmsBiomarkers, TumorFemaleHumansWorld Health OrganizationBiomarkers, Tumor6th editionbreast tumour classificationWHO classification of tumours

Identifiers

PMID42011085
PMCPMC13341065

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.