Long-term outcome in women less than 30 years of age with breast cancer

Background and Objectives: Young age at diagnosis is associated with poor prognosis in female breast cancer, but few studies report long-term outcome in women less than 30 years of age. We evaluated 30-year survival in this patient population. Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed of 29 women less than 30 years of age who were diagnosed with breast cancer between the years 1953 and 1983. All but two patients were followed either until death or for a minimum of 30 years. Results: Actuarial 30-year survival was 19% for tint entire group and 10% for women with invasive ductal carcinoma. Twenty-two (92%) of 24 deaths were due to metastatic breast cancer, including three deaths occurring after disease-free intervals of more than 12 years. Conclusions: Breast cancer in our study population of women less than 30 years of age was a highly lethal disease, particularly in patients with invasive ductal carcinoma. The phenomenon of late death after a long disease-free interval is important in the interpretation of data reflecting newer forms of breast cancer treatment. (C) 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc.