BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to present our experience of dealing with patients with phyllodes tumours (PT) and to correlate the risk of local recurrence with different clinicopathological factors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a retrospective study of 25 women with PT, who were managed at our centre between 1991 and 2005. All the available clinical, operative and histological details were retrieved. The median follow-up period was 4 years (range, 1-9 years). Various clinicopathological features were compared between patients who suffered from recurrent tumours to those not experiencing any recurrence. RESULTS: The mean age of the patients was 45 +/- 7 years and the mean duration of symptoms was 30 +/- 10 months. The mean tumour diameter was 10.5 +/- 5 cm. Preoperative diagnosis with fine needle aspiration cytology could be made in 72% of cases. Overall, 39 surgical procedures were performed (14 of which were performed for recurrences). The histology report was benign, borderline and malignant PT in 28%, 20% and 52% of cases respectively. Recurrent tumours were observed in 36% of patients and 16% experienced more than one recurrence. Two patients with malignant PT developed metastases in the follow-up period, and one of them died. Except for the extent of primary surgery, there were no significant differences in other clinicopathological factors between the recurrent and non-recurrent groups. Patients who had wide local excision (WLE) and procedures of greater magnitudes as primary procedures did not experience recurrence (p = 0.008). However, when WLE was performed for recurrent tumours, 50% of patients suffered from recurrence. CONCLUSION: WLE seems to be the initial procedure of choice for all PTs, and mastectomy for recurrent tumours. Further studies are needed to define the role of adjuvant therapies.
BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to present our experience of dealing with patients with phyllodes tumours (PT) and to correlate the risk of local recurrence with different clinicopathological factors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a retrospective study of 25 women with PT, who were managed at our centre between 1991 and 2005. All the available clinical, operative and histological details were retrieved. The median follow-up period was 4 years (range, 1-9 years). Various clinicopathological features were compared between patients who suffered from recurrent tumours to those not experiencing any recurrence. RESULTS: The mean age of the patients was 45 +/- 7 years and the mean duration of symptoms was 30 +/- 10 months. The mean tumour diameter was 10.5 +/- 5 cm. Preoperative diagnosis with fine needle aspiration cytology could be made in 72% of cases. Overall, 39 surgical procedures were performed (14 of which were performed for recurrences). The histology report was benign, borderline and malignant PT in 28%, 20% and 52% of cases respectively. Recurrent tumours were observed in 36% of patients and 16% experienced more than one recurrence. Two patients with malignant PT developed metastases in the follow-up period, and one of them died. Except for the extent of primary surgery, there were no significant differences in other clinicopathological factors between the recurrent and non-recurrent groups. Patients who had wide local excision (WLE) and procedures of greater magnitudes as primary procedures did not experience recurrence (p = 0.008). However, when WLE was performed for recurrent tumours, 50% of patients suffered from recurrence. CONCLUSION: WLE seems to be the initial procedure of choice for all PTs, and mastectomy for recurrent tumours. Further studies are needed to define the role of adjuvant therapies.