Local regional effectiveness and prognosis of conservative operation and radiation therapy in the treatment of breast cancer

Before 1981, 104 mastectomies with or without post operative irradiation for carcinoma of the breast were performed using primary treatments: Group I, total mastectomy with axillary dissection (Br + Ax) alone; Group II, (Br + Ax) with irradiation; Group III, radical mastectomy alone; and Group IV, radical mastectomy with irradiation. A retrospective study was conducted, and the findings are summarized as follows. 1) In patients with favorable disease (positive axillary nodes ≤ 3 in number), the combination of surgery and irradiation therapy was able to secure 100 % (0/44) of the treated areas. 2) For patients with regionally advanced breast cancer (positive axillary nodes > 4), however, the combination of surgery and irradiation controlled no more than 70 % (9/13). 3) Five-year disease-free survival rates in stage I patients were 89 % (16/18), 89 % (8/9), 92 % (12/13) and 84 % (16/19) in Group, I, II, III, and IV, respectively. (author)