Increased Mortality with Repeat Lumpectomy Alone After Ipsilateral Breast Tumor Recurrence.

BACKGROUND: The benefit of repeat lumpectomy for ipsilateral breast tumor recurrence (IBTR) after breast conserving surgery is currently inconclusive.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients with IBTR with definitive surgery were identified in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results registry between 1973 and 2013. The effect of different IBTR surgeries on overall and cancer-specific mortality was assessed using risk-adjusted Cox proportional hazard regression modeling and stratified propensity score-matching analysis (PSMA).
RESULTS: Of the 5,098 patients with IBTR, 4,048 (79.4%) women underwent mastectomy and 1,050 (20.1%) underwent repeat lumpectomy. In multivariable Cox regression analysis, repeat lumpectomy was associated with increased overall mortality (hazard ratio for death [HR], 1.522; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.317-1.759; p < .001) and cancer-specific mortality (HR, 1.666; 95% CI, 1.319-2.105; p < .001). Similar HRs were derived from the PSMA cohort. However, we found no significant difference in overall mortality for women who underwent repeat lumpectomy followed by radiation therapy (RT) compared with that for those who underwent mastectomy. Moreover, patients with IBTR with small tumors (≤1 cm) who underwent repeat lumpectomy with RT rather than without had similar overall and cancer-specific survival rates to those who underwent mastectomy.
CONCLUSION: Our investigation suggests that compared with mastectomy, repeat lumpectomy for IBTR is associated with higher overall and cancer-specific mortality under real-world observational conditions. Furthermore, repeat lumpectomy with RT is equivalent to mastectomy with respect to overall mortality and may influence treatment decision making for patients with small IBTR. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Although mastectomy has been regarded as the standard treatment for ipsilateral breast tumor recurrence (IBTR) after breast conserving surgery, many patients diagnosed with small and early-detected recurrent tumor might be technically suitable for a less invasive surgical procedure. However, different studies have drawn inconsistent conclusions. The present study is a population-based analysis, which demonstrated the overall unfavorable impact of repeat lumpectomy over mastectomy on survival outcomes for patients with IBTR. However, patients with small IBTR (≤1 cm) that can tolerate radiation therapy may be the optimal candidates for repeat lumpectomy. © AlphaMed Press 2019.