Study: After Lumpectomy, Radiation Treatment of Small Area Seems Effective

Following a lumpectomy, radiation therapy confined to that immediate part of the breast may be as effective as radiation treatment of the entire breast for preventing recurrence of early-stage breast cancer, according to a report in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

Researchers at William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Michigan, seeking to determine the optimal volume of breast tissue requiring post-lumpectomy radiation therapy, compared outcomes for 199 women who received radiation therapy limited to the region of the tumor to 199 women who underwent whole breast radiation therapy.

The women receiving what is called "limited-field radiation therapy" were treated with interstitial brachytherapy, a technique in which radioactive material is inserted into the breast around the site of a lumpectomy.

After a median-followup period of 65 months, "the rate of local recurrence was not statistically significantly different between the patient groups -- one percent for the whole-breast radiation therapy patients versus one percent for the limited-field radiation therapy patients," the researchers reported.

"Limited-field radiation therapy administered to the region of the tumor bed has comparable 5-year local control rates to whole-breast radiation therapy in selected patients," the researchers concluded.

In an accompanying commentary, Dr. C. Norman Coleman of the National Cancer Institute said a clinical trial now is needed to "provide definitive answers for those physicians and patients yet to face the decision about treatment options for early stage breast cancer."

Other Sources: Journal of the National Cancer Institute