title: Clinical course of breast cancer patients with metastases confined to the lungs treated with chemotherapy. The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center experience and review of the literature.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the clinical course of patients with a metastatic breast cancer (MBC) confined to the lungs and treated with doxorubicin/cyclophosphamide-containing chemotherapy (DC-CT).
  
  
  METHODS
  Between 1973 and 1985, 1581 patients with MBC were treated with DC-CT at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. Data for 88 patients (5.6%) with metastases confined to the lungs were reviewed to correlate various clinical characteristics with response to treatment and survival.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The overall response rate was 76% with 33% achieving complete response (CR). The median overall survival time was 22 months (range 1-210). The 10-year survival rate was 9%. The overall response and CR rates were higher for the patients with metastases confined to the lungs (76% and 33%. respectively) than for the remainder of MBC patients (64% and 14%; P < 0.01). The 10-year survival rate was also higher (9% versus 3%, P < 0.01), but there were no differences in median overall survival rate.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This retrospective analysis demonstrated that patients with metastases confined to the lungs treated with DC-CT had a high objective response rate, especially high CR rates, and a median survival comparable to that of our entire population of MBC patients. A small but clinically significant percentage of patients had prolonged survival. Therefore, not all visceral sites are indicators of poor prognosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Breast Medical Oncology, University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, USA.
authors.forename: E A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Diaz-Canton
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Valero
authors.forename: Z
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Rahman
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rodriguez-Monge
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Frye
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: A U
authors.initials: AU
authors.lastname: Buzdar
authors.forename: G N
authors.initials: GN
authors.lastname: Hortobagyi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D017024:Chemotherapy, Adjuvant; D003520:Cyclophosphamide / Q000008:administration & dosage; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D004317:Doxorubicin / Q000008:administration & dosage; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality / Q000556:secondary*; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D018714:Radiotherapy, Adjuvant; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015996:Survival Rate
chemical_list: D004317:Doxorubicin; D003520:Cyclophosphamide