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The aim of our study was to assess various predictors for local recurrence (LR) in patients undergoing breast conservation surgery (BCS) for ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS).An audit was performed of 582 consecutive patients with DCIS between Jan 1975 to June 2008. In patients undergoing BCS, local guidelines reported a margin of ≥10 mm during the above period. Guideline with regard to margin of excision changes soon after this period. We retrospectively analysed clinical and pathological risk factors for local recurrence in patients undergoing BCS. Statistical analysis was carried out using SPSS version 19, and a cox regression model for multivariate analysis of local recurrence was used.Overall 239 women had BCS for DCIS during the above period. The actuarial 5-year recurrence rate was 9.6%. The overall LR rate was 17% (40/239. LR was more common in patients ≤50 years: (10/31 patients, 32%) compared to patients 50 years (30/208, 14%, P = 0.02). Forty three per cent of patients (6/14) with5 mm margin developed LR which was significantly higher compared to patients with 5-9 mm margin (12%, 3/25) and with ≥10 mm margin (14%, 27/188, P = 0.01). On multivariate analysis age ≤50 years,5 mm pathological margin were independent prognostic factors for local recurrence.Our study shows that younger age (≤50 years) and a margin5 mm are poor prognostic factors for LR in patients undergoing breast conservation surgery for DCIS.

Background This pilot study aimed to test the possibility of therapeutic benefit imparted by early intervention based on sequential tumour marker (TM) measurements during follow-up of primary breast cancer (PBC) patients. Methods Patients with oestrogen receptor positive PBC with no clinical and/or radiological evidence of metastases were recruited and followed-up 3-monthly with clinical assessment and TM (CA15.3 and CEA) measurements. The clinical team was blinded to the TM results. Asymptomatic patients who developed raised TMs (based on pre-defined cut-offs) were randomised to either ‘treatment change’ (either start or change of adjuvant endocrine agent to another agent) or ‘no change’ (control). Patients who developed symptomatic metastases came off the study. The primary and secondary endpoints were intervals from randomisation to symptomatic metastases and to last follow-up/death respectively. Results Eighty-five patients (median age = 54 years (30–72)) were recruited with a median follow-up of 81 months (1–124). Sixteen patients were randomised as described. There was no significant difference (treatment change versus no change) with regards to interval from randomisation to symptomatic metastases – 23 (2–62) and 22 (1–63) months respectively (p = 0.9), as well as interval from randomisation to last follow-up/death – 36 (7–63) and 37 (10–63) months respectively (p = 0.9). Conclusions Despite long follow-up (up to 10+ years), this small study has thus far shown no significant difference in outcome. However, we have confirmed the feasibility of this study design but a larger study will be required to show if there is a benefit to this approach.

Chemotherapeutic agents have dominated neoadjuvant treatment compared to endocrine agents in the past and have demonstrated their ability to produce tumour shrinkage to allow breast conservation. However, in the more recent setting, studies have been emerging with the use of aromatase inhibitors, especially comparing its use with tamoxifen in selected group of patients. The role of tamoxifen in its ability to achieve tumour shrinkage has been evaluated in the past, and has shown to produce slow but sustained response. Aromatase inhibitors have shown superiority over tamoxifen in adjuvant and metastatic setting, and the aim of our study was to compare their outcome with regard to response and breast conservation in the neoadjuvant setting. We also looked into optimum duration of neoadjuvant treatment and also the role of pathological complete response as a surrogate marker for clinical outcome. Our review highlights the superiority of aromatase inhibitors over tamoxifen in the neoadjuvant setting and even challenges chemotherapy with regard to response in selected group of patients.

Background Axillary node sampling (ANS) is widely used in conjunction with breast conserving surgery in the treatment of primary breast cancers in the UK. Some evidence suggests that axillary staging techniques can miss intramammary nodes contained within the axillary tail of the breast. This study aims to assess the incidence of such nodes in completion mastectomy specimens in women who have had previous breast conserving surgery and ANS. Methods One hundred and fifty-seven completion mastectomy specimens were obtained from women who had previous breast conserving surgery and ANS, at the Nottingham Breast Institute over a 3-year period. The pathology samples underwent detailed histological examination to identify lymph nodes, and determine their disease status. Results Seventy-six (48%) of completion mastectomy specimens contained intramammary lymph nodes. Fifteen patients were upstaged (lymph node stage) because of the histological findings at completion mastectomy. One patient from the study population received additional systemic treatment, as a result of the upstaging. Conclusion The incidence of intramammary nodes in this series correlates with previous data. This study shows that in breast cancer patients who undergo ANS, intramammary nodes, if present and more so positive, are unlikely to change systemic treatment decisions, but may increase the number of patients needing radiotherapy and or further axillary dissection.

Summary The incidence of local recurrence after mastectomy can be reduced by chest wall radiotherapy. However, only a minority of patients are at substantial risk. No UK national guidelines exist for the use of mastectomy flap radiotherapy. This study evaluated a protocol, whereby only high-risk patients were treated with post-mastectomy flap radiotherapy; identified histologically by grade, vascular invasion and nodal status. All women treated by simple mastectomy for invasive breast cancer at the Nottingham Breast Unit from January 1993 to December 1995 were studied ( n = 292 ). Postoperative flap radiotherapy was given to 147 high-risk women (50.3%). Median follow-up was 76 months. Overall, 12 women (4.1%) developed a chest wall recurrence; six were single spot recurrences and the remaining six were either multiple spot ( n = 3 ) or field change (field change dermal invasion, n = 3 ). The chest wall recurrence rate was 2.7% in those treated with radiotherapy. A low rate of local recurrence has been achieved with selective use of mastectomy flap radiotherapy.

Preoperative hormone therapy for breast cancer has the potential to downstage a primary tumour hence increasing operability as well as making breast conservation feasible. Whether it will achieve any clinically significant survival benefit remains to be elucidated. Preoperative hormone therapy, in contrast to neoadjuvant chemotherapy, produces less severe side effects and can be continued throughout the perioperative period. Presurgical studies have demonstrated anti-tumour effects of hormone therapy, e.g. down-regulation of ER. Current clinical trials have shown that, in patients with ER positive tumours, a response approaching 70% is reached in approximately three months using the traditional hormonal agent tamoxifen. The tumour seldom progresses during this period. New agents (such as third generation aromatase inhibitors and pure anti-oestrogens) may produce more profound and rapid responses. Future trials are required to identify factors other than ER to precisely predict response so that appropriate patients can be selected. The best agents, the ideal methods of monitoring response and the optimum duration of therapy also need to be identified. Clinical trials also need to test if pre- and perioperative hormone therapy is superior to conventional adjuvant hormone therapy in patients with early breast cancer.

One hundred and thirty-one fit elderly patients (> 70 years) presenting with operable breast cancer (< 5 cm) between 1982 and 1987 were randomized to receive primary tamoxifen 20 mg b.d. (n = 66) or wedge mastectomy (n = 65) as sole initial therapy, unselected by oestrogen receptor status. Outcome measures were comparison of loco-regional control, metastasis and overall survival. With median follow-up of 145 months there is no statistical difference in breast cancer specific survival or rate of metastasis. Local control, however, has been significantly better with surgery - 38% of mastectomy patients having developed local recurrence by 10 years compared to 81% with local progression on primary tamoxifen (P < 0.0001 Wilcoxon-Gehan statistic). Of the latter 50% have since required mastectomy in order to achieve local control. In conclusion, primary tamoxifen or wedge mastectomy are comparable treatments in terms of metastasis and overall survival but a high local failure rate on tamoxifen suggests that optimal management of the fit elderly should include surgery.

MUCl mucin is an integral membrane glycoprotein expressed by most if not all ‘wet’ epithelia, such as on bladder, breast, gastric, pancreas, ovary and respiratory tract epithelium, with a molecular weight varying between 250 and 1000 kD. Its extracellular domain consists of a heavily O-link glycosylated peptide core made up in the main of a variable number of multiple repeats of a 20 amino acid sequence referred to as the variable number tandem repeat (VNTR) domain with each VNTR having five potential Olinkage sites. Glycosylation is under enzymatic control and occurs post-translationally and sequentially, leading potentially to the production of four sugar core types capable of elongation into polysaccharide chains. Alterations to these enzymes and to enzymes involved in post-translational modification, which can be associated with disease, will obviously affect the glycosylation state of MUCl. In general, the polysaccharide side chains of tumour associated MUCl are shorter than those on the normally expressed molecule. Both aberrant and up-regulated expression of MUCl are features of malignancy. It is apparent, therefore, that MUCl is highly heterogeneous owing to its polymorphic nature (the VNTRs) and the high degree of variation in glycosylation (for reviews see’.‘). In normal breast tissue, MUCl is expressed on the apical surface of epithelial cells in the ducts and acini from where the molecule is shed via milk fat globules and in soluble form into the milk.3 In tumours, cell polarization is lost, and as a consequence, MUCl has the potential to be expressed over the whole cell surface. This altered cell surface expression, coupled with the disruption of the normal tissue archi

The effects of oil of evening primrose oil on fibroadenomas was assessed over a 6-month period. Eleven out of 21 (52%) of fibroadenomas receiving evening primrose oil and 8 out of 19 (42%) controls reduced in size. This study demonstrates that evening primrose oil does not significantly effect the natural history of breast fibroadenomas.