Outcome and medial presentation of breast cancer: European Institute of Oncology experience

Background No analyses have investigated the prognostic role of medial presentation in breast cancer patients on disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival according to immunohistochemically-defined subtypes. Patients and Methods We collected information from the institutional clinical database on consecutive breast cancer patients who underwent conservative surgery at the European Institute of Oncology, Milan, Italy, between 1994 and 2008. We compared the outcomes of patients with medial breast cancer with those of patients with nonmedial tumors observed at the institution during the same period. Results Among 7369 evaluable patients, 2254 (24%) had their primary tumors in medial quadrants and 7015 (76%) in other areas. Five-year DFS was 84.7% and 86.6% (P =.008) in patients with medial and nonmedial disease, respectively. In multivariate analysis, medial location was correlated with greater risk of recurrence (hazard ratio [HR], 1.23; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.11-1.35; P <.0001) and death (HR, 1.27; 95% CI, 1.09-1.49; P =.0028). Conclusion Medial presentation is an adverse prognostic factor for breast cancer patients.