Ipsilateral breast tumor recurrence after breast-conserving therapy

Abstract

In the modern era of breast-conserving therapy for early-stage breast cancer, ipsilateral breast tumor recurrence (IBTR) represents an increasingly common clinical dilemma. Two kinds of IBTRs have been described: true recurrences, which represent regrowth of uneradicated initial disease, and new primaries, which may be distinct from the index lesion in histology and location. Whether these two entities have different biologies and survival prognoses remains unclear. This article will examine contemporary clinical and pathologic methods to distinguish true recurrence from new primary tumors, focusing on available published data from prospective and retrospective studies. Current challenges and future avenues are discussed for developing a standardized, reproducible classification system for different types of IBTR that may be used in the clinical setting to prognosticate and individualize treatment for patients following in-breast recurrences.

Keywords::

• breast cancer
• classification
• ipsilateral breast tumor recurrence
• new primary
• survival
• true recurrence

Financial & competing interests disclosure

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.