INTRODUCTION: Although trends and variations in the use of breast conservation therapy (BCT) for ductal carcinoma have been studied, little is known about uncommon breast cancer histologies. METHODS: The Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database was used to identify 338,682 patients with T1 or T2 (≤5 cm) ductal, lobular, tubular, mucinous, medullary, or papillary carcinoma of the breast from 1998 to 2008. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to identify predictors of BCT. RESULTS: The majority of patients underwent BCT (60%). The rate of BCT remained relatively constant from 1998 to 2008 overall but varied from 50% for lobular to 79% for tubular. The highest rate of mastectomy was seen in lobular (49%). Nodal positivity following surgical staging was lowest for tubular (6%) and mucinous (8%). Adjuvant radiation was given to 72% overall and was lowest for papillary (58%). Predictors of BCT included tubular (OR 1.8, 95% CI 1.7-1.9) and medullary (OR 2.0, 95% CI 1.8-2.2) subtypes (vs. ductal). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with uncommon breast cancer histologies show wide variation in the application of BCT depending on the primary tumor. This suggests that an individualized approach in the use of BCT depending on histology should be used.
INTRODUCTION: Although trends and variations in the use of breast conservation therapy (BCT) for ductal carcinoma have been studied, little is known about uncommon breast cancer histologies. METHODS: The Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database was used to identify 338,682 patients with T1 or T2 (≤5 cm) ductal, lobular, tubular, mucinous, medullary, or papillary carcinoma of the breast from 1998 to 2008. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to identify predictors of BCT. RESULTS: The majority of patients underwent BCT (60%). The rate of BCT remained relatively constant from 1998 to 2008 overall but varied from 50% for lobular to 79% for tubular. The highest rate of mastectomy was seen in lobular (49%). Nodal positivity following surgical staging was lowest for tubular (6%) and mucinous (8%). Adjuvant radiation was given to 72% overall and was lowest for papillary (58%). Predictors of BCT included tubular (OR 1.8, 95% CI 1.7-1.9) and medullary (OR 2.0, 95% CI 1.8-2.2) subtypes (vs. ductal). CONCLUSIONS:Patients with uncommon breast cancer histologies show wide variation in the application of BCT depending on the primary tumor. This suggests that an individualized approach in the use of BCT depending on histology should be used.