title: Lack of survival gain for elderly women with breast cancer.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The number of elderly women with breast cancer is increasing and will become a major health concern. However, little is known about the optimal treatment for this age group. The aim of this study was to describe time trends for the overall Dutch breast cancer cohort with an emphasis on differences between young and elderly patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  All adult female patients diagnosed in 1995-2005 were selected from the Netherlands Cancer Registry. Relative excess risks for death (adjusted for stage, histology, treatment, and grade) were estimated using a multivariate generalized linear model with a Poisson distribution, based on collapsed relative survival data, using exact survival times.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Overall, 127,805 patients were included. Treatment of patients aged ≥75 years changed significantly over time: they received less surgery, more adjuvant hormonal treatment and chemotherapy, and more hormonal treatment without surgery. In contrast to younger patients, the relative survival did not improve significantly over time for elderly patients. With increasing age, the observed-expected death ratio decreased to almost 1.0.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Survival for elderly patients with breast cancer did not improve significantly. Observed-expected death ratios in the elderly are close to 1, indicating that excess mortality is low. Elderly patients with breast cancer have a higher risk for overtreatment and undertreatment, with a delicate therapeutic balance between breast cancer survival gain and potential toxicities. To improve breast cancer survival in the elderly, a critical reappraisal is needed of costs and benefits of hormonal as well as other treatments, and better selection of patients who can benefit from available therapies is warranted.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Leiden University Medical Centre, P.O. Box 9600, 2300 RC Leiden, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Esther
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Bastiaannet
authors.forename: Johanneke E A
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Portielje
authors.forename: Cornelis J H
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: van de Velde
authors.forename: Anton J M
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: de Craen
authors.forename: Susanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: van der Velde
authors.forename: Peter J K
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Kuppen
authors.forename: Lydia G M
authors.initials: LG
authors.lastname: van der Geest
authors.forename: Maryska L G
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Janssen-Heijnen
authors.forename: Olaf M
authors.initials: OM
authors.lastname: Dekkers
authors.forename: Rudi G J
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Westendorp
authors.forename: Gerrit-Jan
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Liefers
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000401:mortality* / Q000628:therapy; D003627:Data Interpretation, Statistical; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D009426:Netherlands; D012306:Risk; D016019:Survival Analysis; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents