Similar long-term results of breast-conservation treatment for stage I and II invasive lobular carcinoma compared with invasive ductal carcinoma of the breast

BACKGROUND. The objective of the current study was to determine the long-term results of breast-conservation treatment in women with early-stage, invasive lobular carcinoma of the breast. METHODS. Between 1977 and 1995,1093 women with Stage I and II invasive ductal carcinoma of the breast and 55 women with invasive lobular carcinoma of the breast underwent lumpectomy, axillary lymph node dissection, and radiation treatment. Overall, 49% of the women received adjuvant systemic therapy (chemotherapy and/or hormones). RESULTS. The median age was 52 years for patients in the invasive ductal group and 54 years for patients in the invasive lobular group. The median follow-up was 8.7 years and 10.2 years for patients in the invasive ductal and invasive lobular groups, respectively. A comparison of patients who had invasive lobular carcinoma with patients who had invasive ductal carcinoma showed no difference in the 10-year actuarial rates of overall survival (85% vs. 79%, respectively; P = 0.73), cause-specific survival (93% vs. 84%, respectively; P = 0.85), or freedom from distant metastases (81% vs. 80%, respectively; P = 0.76). The 10-year rates of local failure were 18% for patients with invasive lobular carcinoma and 12% for patients with invasive ductal carcinoma (P = 0.24), and the 10-year rates of contralateral breast carcinoma development for the 2 groups were 12% and 8%, respectively (P = 0.40). CONCLUSIONS. Breast-conservation treatment yielded similar long-term results for women with early-stage, invasive lobular carcinoma and women with the more prevalent invasive ductal carcinoma. (c) 2005 American Cancer Society.