Clinicopathological characteristics of recurrence more than 10 years after surgery in patients with breast carcinoma.
BACKGROUND
As most recurrences in patients with breast cancer occur in the first 5 years after surgery, recurrences more than 10 years after surgery are not very frequent, and their recurrent pattern and prognosis have not been thoroughly analyzed in the literature.


METHODS
A review of 1,114 patients with breast carcinoma surgically treated between January 1980 and December 1993 was carried out. There were 284 (25.5%) patients with recurrence. Out of these 284 patients, 12 (4.4%) whose recurrence occurred more than 10 years after surgery were entered in this study.


RESULTS
No prognostic factors that specifically predicted recurrence more than 10 years after surgery were identified. From the time of recurrence, the 5-year survival rate was 78.9% and 27.0% in patients with breast carcinoma recurring more and less than 10 years after surgery, respectively (p<0.01).


CONCLUSIONS
The response rate to therapy in patients with recurrence more than 10 years after surgery is high, and such patients have significantly better prognosis compared with other patients with recurrence, which means that aggressive therapy may be appropriate management for patients with very late recurrence.
Takeuchi
Hideya
H
Department of Surgery, National Hospital Organization Beppu Medical Center, 1473 Oaza-Uchikamado, Beppu 874-0011, Japan. t3996@beppu.hosp.go.jp
Muto
Yoichi
Y
Tashiro
Hideya
H
D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008875:Middle Aged; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000473:pathology*; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011379:Prognosis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015996:Survival Rate; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome