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Routine use of postoperative chest wall and nodal irradiation in all T3pN0 breast cancer patients may not be required The work presented in this paper began in the early 1990’s. At that time, T3pN0 breast cancer was considered stage III disease and post-mastectomy radiation treatment was routinely offered. The topic of adjuvant radiotherapy for T3pN0 patients has been revisited on a number of occasions since the early 1990’s and continues to be recommended by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, despite classification of these patients being downstaged to IIB disease. Some early studies by other investigators have also suggested that patients with T3pN0 breast cancer who have undergone mastectomy yielding clear margins may also not benefit by adjuvant irradiation. Our study is among the largest and has one of the longest follow-up periods. Our results demonstrate that the rate of local recurrence and distant failure for T3pN0 patients is not substantially different from T2pN0 mastectomy patients, and as such, adjuvant radiation treatment need not be routinely recommended.
Bibliographic reference:
John E. Mignano Department of Radiation Oncology, Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, MD, USA
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