A 15-year follow-up study of patients treated for carcinoma of the breast

Abstract

The results are presented of a 15-year follow-up of 704 female cases of carcinoma of the breast treated in 1947-50. The analysis of the survival data suggests that about 20% of the cases were cured; that the long-term survivors were not particularly likely to die from causes other than cancer of the breast, but were more liable than the normal population to contract a carcinoma of the remaining breast; that for a given age and clinical stage, the length of history did not significantly affect survival rates, bit since shorter histories were associated with earlier clinical stages, earlier diagnosis might have led to improved results; that survival rates were not affected by tumor site; and that the type of operation had no effect on long-term prognosis.