Is the Rising Use of Bilateral Mastectomy for Unilateral Breast Cancer Advantageous?

Compared with breast-conserving therapy or unilateral mastectomy, bilateral mastectomy had no overall survival benefit.

Bilateral mastectomy's use has been propelled by patient preference despite the dearth of evidence for survival benefits. In an analysis of California Cancer Registry data from 1998 through 2011 including 189,734 women with unilateral stage 0 to 3 breast cancer, researchers evaluated outcomes of bilateral mastectomy, breast-conserving therapy (BCT) including radiotherapy, and unilateral mastectomy (median follow-up, 89 months).

Rates of bilateral mastectomy rose from 2.0% in 1998 to 12.3% in 2011. The rate of increase was most dramatic among breast cancer patients aged ≤40, escalating from 3.6% to 33.0%. BCT was the treatment in 55.0% of cases, bilateral mastectomy in 6.0%, and unilateral mastectomy in 39.0%. Use of reconstruction was not do…

Reviewing Author

Henry Mark Kuerer, MD, PhD, FACS

Disclosures

Speaker's BureauPhysicians’ Education Resource, LLC

RoyaltiesMcGraw-Hill Professional; UpToDate, Inc.

Editorial BoardsAnnals of Surgical Oncology

Leadership Positions in Professional SocietiesAmerican Society of Breast Surgeons (Chair, Publications Committee)