Do big breasts disadvantage women with breast cancer?

The present study was undertaken in order to discover whether patients with breast cancer in large breasts experienced a delay in the detection of their cancer due to the bulk of the breast and consequently presented with more advanced tumours compared with women with small breasts. Mastectomy specimens were weighed and their dimensions measured, in particular recording breast mass and breast thickness (anterior-posterior depth). Tumour diameter, the number of involved lymph nodes and the oestrogen and progesterone receptor levels were measured as prognostic indices. Although there was no difference in receptor status of tumours from large and small breasts, on presentation, patients with big breasts had larger tumours and more involved lymph nodes than women with small breasts, whether breast size was assessed by weight or thickness. Women with large breasts may therefore be expected to fare worse than those with small breasts.