Surgery Type Does Not Impact Breast Cancer Survival in Younger Patients

WEDNESDAY, April 13, 2022 (HealthDay News) — Overall survival does not differ based on type of surgery in younger patients with breast cancer, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Breast Surgeons, held from April 6 to 10 in Las Vegas.

Christine Pestana, M.D., from Atrium Health in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and colleagues investigated the association between surgical approach and survival in young patients with breast cancer. The analysis included 591 women (younger than 40 years) with nonmetastatic invasive breast cancer who received surgical intervention between 2010 and 2019 at a single institution.

The researchers found that only an absence of hormone therapy was significant, with a 2.9-fold increased risk for death for patients who did not take hormone therapy versus those using it. Black race was associated with an increased risk for death in all molecular subtype categories in a univariate analysis, but in a multivariate analysis, this finding only held true in the triple negative group, with Black race associated with a 5.7 times increased risk for death even after accounting for all other risk factors. There was no impact on overall survival seen for use of mastectomy versus breast conservation across any of the molecular subtypes.

“Studies like this show that lumpectomy, a far less aggressive approach with fewer potential complications and morbidity, is equally as effective as removing an entire breast,” Pestana said in a statement.

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