Breast cancer in the young (≤35 years): A single center study from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences.

Abstract

e12539 Background: Breast cancer in young women (</= 35 years) is uncommon and accounts for 1-2 % of all breast cancer in the West. There is limited data on breast cancer in the young from India. The aim of our study was to assess clinical, pathological parameters and outcome in young breast cancer patients. Methods: We carried out an analysis of 271 patients of young breast cancer patients (</=35 years) registered between 2000 to 2012 at I.R.C.H, AIIMS, New Delhi, India. Results: The median age was 31 years (range 18-35). The median duration of symptoms was 10 months (range 0.25-60). Breast lump was the commonest (93%) presenting symptom (left >right side). Ninety percent of patients were married and median age at first child birth was 23 years. Positive family history was elicited in only 15 patients. The TNM stage distribution was: stage I was 3 %, stage II- 20%, stage III- 55%, and stage IV- 22%. The median clinical tumour size was 5.1 cm. Modified radical mastectomy was the commonest surgical procedure and this was done in 80 % of cases. The histopathological analysis showed 93% had infiltrating ductal carcinoma. Thirty percent of tumours were high grade and 55% had pathological node positive disease. ER/PR and her-2neu positivity was 33% and 30% respectively. Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) constituted 33%. Fifty five patients presented with metastasis. A combination of anthracycline and taxanes were used in the majority of patients and Trastuzumab could be used only in 6 cases out of 72 patients who were Her-2 neu positive. With a median follow up of 30 months (non metastatic group), three years disease free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) was 50% and 60%. Higher nodal stage, tumour size (>5 cm), negative hormonal status (triple negative) and visceral metastasis at baseline predicted poor outcome. Conclusions: Young women constituted 8 % of breast cancer cases, this proportion is much higher than the published Western figures of 1-2 % and reflects younger age of our population. Even in this young group ER/ PR positivity was 33% and almost a third were her-2 neu positive. Higher nodal stage, tumour size (>5 cm), triple negativity and visceral metastasis at baseline predicted poor outcome.