Improvement of survival and prospect of cure in patients with metastatic breast cancer

Breast Cancer. 2012 Jul;19(3):191-9. doi: 10.1007/s12282-011-0276-3. Epub 2011 May 13.

Abstract

Patients with metastatic breast cancer have traditionally been considered incurable with conventional treatment. However, 5-10% of those patients survive more than 5 years, and 2-5% survive more than 10 years. Recent studies suggest that the survival of patients with metastatic breast cancer has been slowly improving. In this review, we examine the possible curative approach for a certain group of patients with metastatic breast cancer. We identify that patients most likely to benefit from such an aggressive approach are young and have good performance status, adequate body functional reserve, long disease-free interval before recurrence, oligometastatic disease, and low systemic tumor load. An aggressive multidisciplinary approach including both local treatment of macroscopic disease and systemic treatment of microscopic disease can result in prolonged disease control in certain patients with metastatic breast cancer. Whether patients with prolonged disease control are "cured" remains controversial.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Age Factors
  • Antineoplastic Agents / administration & dosage
  • Antineoplastic Agents / therapeutic use
  • Bone Neoplasms / mortality
  • Bone Neoplasms / secondary
  • Bone Neoplasms / therapy
  • Brain Neoplasms / mortality
  • Brain Neoplasms / secondary
  • Brain Neoplasms / therapy
  • Breast Neoplasms / mortality*
  • Breast Neoplasms / pathology*
  • Breast Neoplasms / therapy*
  • Female
  • Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation
  • Humans
  • Liver Neoplasms / mortality
  • Liver Neoplasms / secondary
  • Liver Neoplasms / therapy
  • Lung Neoplasms / mortality
  • Lung Neoplasms / secondary
  • Lung Neoplasms / therapy

Substances

  • Antineoplastic Agents