Obstacles to breast-conserving therapy include age, socioeconomic factors, and proximity to treatment centers.
Breast-conserving therapy (BCT) that combines lumpectomy and breast irradiation has been the preferred treatment for most women with early-stage breast cancer (EBC) since multiple randomized trials have shown equivalent survival with BCT compared with mastectomy. To examine recent trends in the use of BCT, investigators accessed the National Cancer Data Base to study more than 700,000 women treated for early-stage breast cancer between 1998 and 2011.
The use of BCT increased from 54.3% to 60.1% overall during this period. However, there were persistent and disturbing differences based on age, socioeconomic factors, and proximity to treatment centers. The use of BCT was greater in patients aged 52 to 61 years (62.8%) compared with younger pat…
Reviewing Author
DisclosuresConsultant/Advisory BoardLilly; AstraZeneca; Gilead
Grant/Research SupportBreast Cancer Research Foundation
Editorial BoardsClinical Breast Cancer; Oncology; Annals of Surgery; Breast Cancer Research and Treatment
Leadership Positions in Professional SocietiesNational Comprehensive Cancer Network (Chair, Breast Cancer Panel); American Board of Internal Medicine (Medical Oncology Board)
DisclosuresConsultant/Advisory BoardLilly; AstraZeneca; Gilead
Grant/Research SupportBreast Cancer Research Foundation
Editorial BoardsClinical Breast Cancer; Oncology; Annals of Surgery; Breast Cancer Research and Treatment
Leadership Positions in Professional SocietiesNational Comprehensive Cancer Network (Chair, Breast Cancer Panel); American Board of Internal Medicine (Medical Oncology Board)