Title

Effect of Interval to Definitive Breast Surgery on Clinical Presentation and Survival in Early-Stage Invasive Breast Cancer

Authors

Olga Vujovic, University of Western OntarioFollow
Edward Yu, University of Western OntarioFollow
Anil Cherian, London Regional Cancer Program, London, ON
Francisco Perera, University of Western OntarioFollow
A. Rashid Dar, University of Western OntarioFollow
Larry Stitt, University of Western OntarioFollow
A. Hammond, University of Western OntarioFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

11-1-2009

Journal

International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology, Physics

Volume

75

Issue

3

First Page

771

Last Page

774

Abstract

Purpose: To examine the effect of clinical presentation and interval to breast surgery on local recurrence and survival in early-stage breast cancer.

Methods and materials: The data from 397 patients with Stage T1-T2N0 breast carcinoma treated with conservative surgery and breast radiotherapy between 1985 and 1992 were reviewed at the London Regional Cancer Program. The clinical presentation consisted of a mammogram finding or a palpable lump. The intervals from clinical presentation to definitive breast surgery used for analysis were 0-4, >4-12, and >12 weeks. The Kaplan-Meier estimates of the time to local recurrence, disease-free survival, and cause-specific survival were determined for the three groups. Cox regression analysis was used to evaluate the effect of clinical presentation and interval to definitive surgery on survival.

Results: The median follow-up was 11.2 years. No statistically significant difference was found in local recurrence as a function of the interval to definitive surgery (p = .424). A significant difference was noted in disease-free survival (p = .040) and cause-specific survival (p = .006) with an interval of >12 weeks to definitive breast surgery. However, the interval to definitive surgery was dependent on the presentation for cause-specific survival, with a substantial effect for patients with a mammographic presentation and a negligible effect for patients with a lump presentation (interaction p = .041).

Conclusion: The results of this study suggest that an interval of >12 weeks to breast surgery might be associated with decreased survival for patients with a mammographic presentation, but it appeared to have no effect on survival for patients presenting with a palpable breast lump.

Notes

Published in: Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys, Volume 75, Issue 3, Pages 771-774 (1 November 2009). doi: 10.1016/j.ijrobp.2008.11.049