title: Are two-centimeter breast cancers large or small?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Node-negative breast cancers from 2 cm to 5 cm in size are classified as stage ii, and smaller cancers, as stage i. We sought to determine if the prognosis of women with a breast cancer exactly 2 cm in size more closely resembles that of women with a stage i or a stage ii breast cancer.
  
  
  METHODS
  Using a cohort of 4265 young women with breast cancer, we compared the 10-year breast cancer mortality rates for women who had a tumour 0.1-1.9 cm, exactly 2.0 cm, and 2.1-2.9 cm.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In the first 3 years after diagnosis, the survival pattern of women with a 2.0-cm breast cancer was nearly identical to that of women with a larger cancer (2.1-3.0 cm). From year 3 to year 10, the relative survival of women with a 2.0-cm breast cancer was improved and nearly identical to that of women with a smaller cancer. The 10-year survival rate was 89.3% for women with tumours less than 20 mm, 86.1% for women with tumours equal to 20 mm, and 81.2% for women with 21-mm to 29-mm tumours.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  For young women with small breast cancers, the relative mortality from breast cancer is dynamic with increasing tumour size and varies with time from diagnosis.
authors.affiliation: Women's College Research Institute, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON.
authors.forename: S A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Narod
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Iqbal
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jakubowska
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Huzarski
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cybulski
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gronwald
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Byrski
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lubinski
keywords: Breast cancer; stage; survival
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