Patterns of relapse in locally advanced breast cancer treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by surgery and radiotherapy

Aims : To define the clinical and pathological predictors of locoregional recurrence (LRR) in locally advanced breast cancer (LABC) patients treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT). Materials and Methods : We retrospectively reviewed the outcome of 141 patients with stage II to stage III carcinoma breast treated at Department of Radiotherapy, PGIMER, Chandigarh from 1998-2002. Mean age of the patients was 46 years, 49% of patients were premenopausal and 51% were postmenopausal. The tumor stage was T2 in 18%; T3 in 61% and T4 in 26% of the patients. NACT regimen given was FAC (5-fluorouracil, adriamycin and cyclophosphamide) in 85% and CMF (cyclophosphamide, methotrexate and 5-Fu) in 15% patients. Results : After NACT, surgery was possible in 95% patients. Conservative surgery was possible in 23% patients and mastectomy was done in 72% of patients. Pathological complete response (pCR) was seen in 18% patients and pathological partial response (pPR) in 69% of patients. Stable and progressive disease was seen in 6% and 7% of patients respectively. Adjuvant radiation therapy was given to 86% patients. Six percent patients developed progressive disease and 4% of patients did not turn up for radiation. Five year LRR was 6% and relapse free survival (RFS) was 94%. Thirty-two (23%) patients developed distant metastasis resulting in distant metastasis free survival of 77%. The factors that correlated positively with LRR on univariate analysis included tumor stage, stage and pathological nodal stage. However, on multivariate analysis, tumor stage and pathological nodal stage were significant. Factors that correlated for distant relapse were tumor stage, response to chemotherapy, type of surgery, extracapsular extension (ECE) and tamoxifen therapy. On multivariate analysis only ECE was the significant factor that correlated with distant relapse free survival. Conclusion : Thus, tumor stage and pathological nodal stage remains the most important predictor of LRR in LABC. Factors that correlated for distant relapse were tumor stage, response to chemotherapy, type of surgery and ECE and tamoxifen therapy.

Keywords
Locally advanced breast cancer, locoregional recurrence, neoadjuvant chemotherapy