The outcome of treatment by tumorectory and radiotherapy of patients with operable breast cancer

We performed a retrospective study on 314 patients treated for a localized breast cancer by tumorectomy and radiotherapy to determine the overall survival, incidence of loco-regional failure and outcome of salvage surgery. All patients were followed for at least three years. Two hundred and fourteen patients had tumors ≤ 3 cm and 74 had tumors ≤ 6 cm. The three and five years absolute survival, free of disease (NED), is 88% ($\text{276}\text{314}$) and 84% ($\text{190}\text{225}$). The incidence of loco-regional failures was not dependent on tumor size and did not exceed 10% for the entire group. Recurrences were common (35%) in young patients (≤ 30). No patient older than 50 had recurrences. Eighty-one percent of failures appeared within three years. Salvage surgery was performed on 78% ($\text{14}\text{18}$) of patients with recurrences; 57% ($\text{8}\text{14}$) were free of disease (NED). Local failure in this group was not necessarily associated with disseminated cancer. Tumorectomy followed by radiotherapy is an acceptable alternative to mastectomy, particularly since salvage surgery can usually be successfully performed for recurrences.