Ten-year breast cancer survival rates are the same in women diagnosed with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), regardless of the treatment they receive, according to a new study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
Researchers from Duke Cancer Institute found, in women initially diagnosed with DCIS, 10-year breast cancer survival rates were 98.9% for those who underwent lumpectomy plus radiation, 98.5% for mastectomy, and 98.4% for lumpectomy alone (JNCI, September 30, 2015).
The findings suggest there's more work to be done in providing the right individualized treatment for these patients, said lead author Dr. E. Shelley Hwang in a statement released by Duke.
"We need more and better evidence for the therapies we recommend to each individual patient to make sure that our interventions are indeed benefiting them," she said.
Hwang and colleagues used data from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program to analyze more than 121,000 cases between 1991 and 2010 in which women were diagnosed with DCIS. The group found that patients have opted for less extensive surgery over time, with rates of single mastectomy declining from 44.9% to 19.3%, and rates of lumpectomy plus radiation increasing from 24.2% to 46.8%.
The researchers also found, however, the rate of double mastectomies has also increased, from 0% to 8.5%.
The study raises new questions about how to treat DCIS, according to Hwang.
"This is an important women's health issue, and we still do not have enough data around what the best treatment is," she said. "Studies like ours should be viewed as a call for well-designed clinical trials that could provide more information to better guide both doctors and patients."
