Family History of Breast Cancer Doesn't Mean a Poor Prognosis for Women Who Develop the Disease
A new study finds that women who are diagnosed with breast cancer and have a family history of the disease face no worse a prognosis after treatment than other women with breast cancer. The study, which was published by Eccles et al in the British Journal of Surgery, offers a positive message for women who may worry about their future in light of a family history of breast cancer.
About one-quarter of breast cancer cases in developed countries are estimated to be related to hereditary factors, and researchers wondered—do these cases have a worse prognosis than those seemingly unrelated to family history?
Study Details
To answer this question, Ramsey Cutress, BM BCh, MA, PhD, FRCS,Associate Professor in Breast Surgery at the University of Southampton and University Hospital Southampton Foundation Trust, and his colleagues conducted an analysis of the Prospective Outcomes in Sporadic vs Hereditary breast cancer (POSH) study, which included 2,850 women under age 41 years who were diagnosed with breast cancer and treated in the United Kingdom. The study, led by principal investigator Diana Eccles, MB ChB, MD, FRCP, recorded patients’ personal characteristics, tumor characteristics, treatment, and family history of breast/ovarian cancer over a 15-year period.
The investigators found that there were no significant differences in cancer recurrence rates after treatment for women with a history of breast cancer vs those without.
“Successful treatment for breast cancer is just as likely in young patients with a family history of breast cancer, as in those without a family history,” said Dr. Cutress. “Patients with a family history of breast cancer can therefore be reassured that their family history alone does not mean that their outcome will be worse.”
The researchers now plan to investigate whether certain breast cancer gene variants have any impact on the effectiveness of different anticancer treatments. “There is some evidence in laboratory experiments and observations in humans that BRCA1 gene carriers in particular may be more sensitive to certain types of chemotherapy,” said Dr. Eccles. “If the outlook is more optimistic than might be expected for these patients, this will help in planning future preventive surgical options at the time of breast cancer treatment.”
Dr. Cutress is the corresponding author for the British Journal of Surgery article.
The content in this post has not been reviewed by the American Society of Clinical Oncology, Inc. (ASCO®) and does not necessarily reflect the ideas and opinions of ASCO®.
