Key clinical point: Adjuvant radiation therapy (RT) alone or in combination with endocrine therapy (ET) was associated with a lower risk for recurrence than ET alone in older women with early node-negative, human receptor-positive (HR+) breast cancer (BC). In addition, most older women with stage I HR+ breast cancers continue to receive radiation, at higher rates than patients with node-negative stage II tumors.
Major finding: Compared with ET alone, use of RT+ET (hazard ratio [HR], 0.62; P less than .0001) and RT alone (HR, 0.75; P less than .0001) was associated with a lower risk for recurrence at a median follow-up of 48 months. RT was received by 65.5% of patients, with no decrease over time. However, patients with T2 vs. T1 tumors remained less likely to receive RT (odds ratio, 0.83; P = .0024).
Study details : This study evaluated the use of adjuvant RT (n=2,046), ET (n=2,407), or RT+ET (n=4,643) after breast-conserving therapeutic surgery in older women (age at diagnosis, 66 years or more) with T1-2 node-negative, HR+ BC.
Disclosures: This study was supported by grants from the Cancer Information and Population Health Resource, UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, and the American Society for Radiation Oncology. Some of the study investigators reported employment and ownership in various pharmaceutical companies.
Source: Reeder-Hayes KE et al. J Geriatr Oncol. 2021 Feb 4. doi: 10.1016/j.jgo.2021.01.003 .