title: The Dilemma of Breast Cancer Treatment and Existing Collagen Vascular Disease: A Case of Scleroderma and Review of the Literature.
abstract: Collagen vascular diseases present a treatment dilemma for patients with breast cancer. Due to the potential for severe, acute, and late complications of radiation therapy, a history of collagen vascular disease (CVD) is a relative contraindication to breast-conserving treatment. We present a case of early stage breast cancer in a patient with severe scleroderma treated with breast-conserving surgery without radiation and a brief review of the published literature regarding the therapeutic approach to the patient with CVD and breast cancer.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Michigan State University, CHM, Lansing, Michigan.
authors.forename: Nicole M
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Zaremba
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Oncology, Michigan State University, CHM, Lansing, Michigan.
authors.forename: Deimante
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Tamkus
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiation Oncology, Sparrow Hospital, Lansing, Michigan.
authors.forename: Luciano
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: DiCarlo
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiation Oncology, Sparrow Hospital, Lansing, Michigan.
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Herman
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Michigan State University, CHM, Lansing, Michigan.
authors.forename: Mersadies
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Martin
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Michigan State University, CHM, Lansing, Michigan.
authors.forename: Harvey L
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Bumpers
keywords: breast cancer; collagen vascular disease; radiation therapy; scleroderma