Premium
Breast cancer in NSW women: a shift in tumour size
Author(s) -
Kricker Anne,
HØyer Annette P,
McCredie Margaret,
Porter Lesley A
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
medical journal of australia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.904
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1326-5377
pISSN - 0025-729X
DOI - 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1995.tb126119.x
Subject(s) - medicine , breast cancer , mammography , histopathology , cancer , gynecology , epidemiology , obstetrics , oncology , pathology
Objective To determine whether there has been an increase in the proportion of small (< 1 cm in size) and localised breast cancers in women aged 50‐69 (the group actively recruited to mammographie screening) compared with women aged 40—49. Design Cases of invasive breast cancer in women aged 40—69 notified to the NSW Central Cancer Registry in 1986, 1989 and 1992 were included. Tumour sizes were determined from histopathology reports. Results A higher percentage of breast cancers were under 1 cm in size in 1992 (10%) than in 1986 and 1989 (7%). The increase in the percentage of small breast cancers was statistically significant in women aged 50‐69 (X2 for linear trend, 7.9; P= 0.005) but not in those aged 40‐49 (x2 for linear trend, 2.5; P=0.12). Slightly more than half the breast cancers (53%) in 1992 were localised to the breast, representing an increase from 49% in both 1986 and 1989. This increase was also statistically significant in women aged 50‐69 (x2 for linear trend, 3.9; P= 0.05) but not in those aged 40‐49 (x2 for linear trend, 1.4; P=0.24). Conclusions Breast cancers in 1986, 1989 and 1992 showed a moderately strong shift to smaller tumours and localised disease in women aged 50‐69. As women of this age group were targeted by mammographie screening, the widespread availability of mammography may explain this shift.