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The enigmatic behavior of breast cancer
Author(s) -
Devitt James E.
Publication year - 1971
Publication title -
cancer
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.052
H-Index - 304
eISSN - 1097-0142
pISSN - 0008-543X
DOI - 10.1002/1097-0142(197101)27:1<12::aid-cncr2820270104>3.0.co;2-c
Subject(s) - medicine , stage (stratigraphy) , breast cancer , cancer , disease , metastasis , time of death , metastatic breast cancer , primary tumor , oncology , paleontology , emergency medicine , biology
A series of 502 patients with metastatic and/or recurrent breast cancer has been reviewed to study some of the time characteristics of the reactivated disease. Metastases become clinically apparent over an unexplainably wide range of time, but the median time of appearance becomes shorter with the more advanced presenting clinical stages. Survival after metastases also varies over an unexplainably wide range of time, but the median survival time after the appearance of the metastases becomes shorter with the more advanced presenting clinical stage, suggesting that clinical stage indicates tumor‐host potential more than the chronological age of the tumor. Metastases at specific sites occur at no constant relative time in the treatment‐to‐death interval, suggesting varying growth rates throughout the course of the disease. Metastases occurring within the first 18 months of treatment or in patients presenting with advanced clinical stages are more evenly distributed throughout the treatment‐to‐death interval than those occurring more than 36 months after initial treatment or with small primary lesions. This suggests that the ease of establishment of a metastasis is probably independent from its subsequent behavior.