Are Two-Centimeter Breast Cancers Large or Small?

Narod, S.A.; Iqbal, J.; Jakubowska, A.; Huzarski, T.; Sun, P.; Cybulski, C.; Gronwald, J.; Byrski, T.; Lubinski, J.

doi:10.3747/co.20.1364

Open AccessArticle

Are Two-Centimeter Breast Cancers Large or Small?

by

S.A. Narod

^1,*,

J. Iqbal

¹,

A. Jakubowska

²,

T. Huzarski

²,

P. Sun

¹,

C. Cybulski

²,

J. Gronwald

²,

T. Byrski

² and

J. Lubinski

²

¹

Women’s College Research Institute, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

²

International Hereditary Cancer Center, Department of Genetics and Pathology, Pomeranian Medical University, Szczecin, Poland

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Curr. Oncol. 2013, 20(4), 205-211; https://doi.org/10.3747/co.20.1364

Submission received: 2 May 2013 / Revised: 3 June 2013 / Accepted: 4 July 2013 / Published: 1 August 2013

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Abstract

Background: Node-negative breast cancers from 2 cm to 5 cm in size are classified as stage ii, and smaller cancers, as stage i. We sought to determine if the prognosis of women with a breast cancer exactly 2 cm in size more closely resembles that of women with a stage i or a stage ii breast cancer. Methods: Using a cohort of 4265 young women with breast cancer, we compared the 10-year breast cancer mortality rates for women who had a tumour 0.1–1.9 cm, exactly 2.0 cm, and 2.1–2.9 cm. Results: In the first 3 years after diagnosis, the survival pattern of women with a 2.0-cm breast cancer was nearly identical to that of women with a larger cancer (2.1–3.0 cm). From year 3 to year 10, the relative survival of women with a 2.0-cm breast cancer was improved and nearly identical to that of women with a smaller cancer. The 10-year survival rate was 89.3% for women with tumours less than 20 mm, 86.1% for women with tumours equal to 20 mm, and 81.2% for women with 21-mm to 29-mm tumours. Conclusions: For young women with small breast cancers, the relative mortality from breast cancer is dynamic with increasing tumour size and varies with time from diagnosis.

Keywords: breast cancer; stage; survival

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MDPI and ACS Style

Narod, S.A.; Iqbal, J.; Jakubowska, A.; Huzarski, T.; Sun, P.; Cybulski, C.; Gronwald, J.; Byrski, T.; Lubinski, J. Are Two-Centimeter Breast Cancers Large or Small? Curr. Oncol. 2013, 20, 205-211. https://doi.org/10.3747/co.20.1364

AMA Style

Narod SA, Iqbal J, Jakubowska A, Huzarski T, Sun P, Cybulski C, Gronwald J, Byrski T, Lubinski J. Are Two-Centimeter Breast Cancers Large or Small? Current Oncology. 2013; 20(4):205-211. https://doi.org/10.3747/co.20.1364

Chicago/Turabian Style

Narod, S.A., J. Iqbal, A. Jakubowska, T. Huzarski, P. Sun, C. Cybulski, J. Gronwald, T. Byrski, and J. Lubinski. 2013. "Are Two-Centimeter Breast Cancers Large or Small?" Current Oncology 20, no. 4: 205-211. https://doi.org/10.3747/co.20.1364

APA Style

Narod, S. A., Iqbal, J., Jakubowska, A., Huzarski, T., Sun, P., Cybulski, C., Gronwald, J., Byrski, T., & Lubinski, J. (2013). Are Two-Centimeter Breast Cancers Large or Small? Current Oncology, 20(4), 205-211. https://doi.org/10.3747/co.20.1364

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Are Two-Centimeter Breast Cancers Large or Small?

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