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For Release: November 2, 1999
BREAST CANCER PATIENTS WHO HAVE BREAST CONSERVING TREATMENT HAVE LOW RISK OF DEVELOPING SECOND CANCER
Breast cancer patients who choose lumpectomy and radiation therapy can feel confident in their decision. A new 15-year study has found that patients who have breast conserving treatment have the same low risk of developing a second cancer as those who choose mastectomy.
The study compared 1,029 patients with early stage breast cancer who had lumpectomy and radiation therapy to 1,387 who had mastectomy treated at Yale University School of Medicine in New Haven, CT.
"We found that 6.5 percent of patients treated with lumpectomy and radiation therapy developed a second cancer in their untreated breast compared to 6.6 percent who were treated by surgery alone," says Bruce Haffty, associate professor of therapeutic radiology at Yale, and the senior investigator in the study.
Five percent of the women treated with lumpectomy and radiation therapy compared to seven percent treated with surgery developed a second cancer at a site other than the breast, says Dr. Haffty.
"These data held up regardless of the age of the women," says Dr. Haffty. Previous studies had indicated that younger women who underwent radiation treatment for breast cancer had a higher incidence of developing a second cancer compared to those who had surgery without radiation. This study, which reviewed the data of women who had been treated with modern techniques, showed that the risk is the same regardless of age," he says.
The study also found that adding chemotherapy to treatment made little difference in whether or not a woman developed a second cancer, says Dr. Haffty. Women who were given hormones (Tamoxifen) were only slightly less likely to develop a second cancer, says Dr. Haffty. "A more significant benefit of Tamoxifen may not have been seen in our study because of the small number of women who were on hormone therapy," he adds.
"We will want to continue to monitor these women for 25 to 30 years to confirm that these results remain stable over a longer period of time," Dr. Haffty says.
The study was presented November 2 at the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology annual meeting in San Antonio, TX.
The American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ASTRO) is the largest radiation oncology society in the world, with more than 5,000 members. As a leading organization in radiation oncology, biology and physics, the society's goals are to advance the scientific base of radiation therapy and to extend the benefits of radiation therapy to those with cancer.
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