Women treated for early breast cancer should be followed for at least 10 years

doi:10.1136/bmj.39244.725810.DB

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Susan Mayor

London

Women who undergo breast conserving surgery for early breast cancer should be followed up for much longer than the three to five years recommended in current guidelines, warns a study published this week. The study shows that relapses can occur at least 10 years after initial treatment.

The study, published in the British Journal of Cancer, analysed relapses in 1312 women with early stage breast cancer who underwent breast conserving surgery and postoperative radiotherapy between 1991 and 1998 and who were followed up at two centres in Edinburgh (doi: 10.1038/sj.bjc.6603815). Analysis of the 110 treatable relapses showed that they occurred in 1% to 1.5% of the women in each …