Even a slight increase in interrupted treatment days (2 days compared to 1 or none) significantly impacts OS.
A recent study published in The Journal of the National Cancer Institute sheds light on the significant effect of treatment interruptions during adjuvant radiotherapy on overall survival (OS) rates among patients with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC).
Key Points:
- Adjuvant radiotherapy treatment interruptions are associated with worse OS in TNBC patients.
- Researchers analyzed data from 35,845 TNBC patients in the National Cancer Database from 2010 to 2014.
- Treatment interruptions, leading to extended treatment durations, correlated with worse OS.
- Patients with 2-5 interrupted days had a higher risk of death (HR, 1.069; 95% CI, 1.002-1.140).
- The risk of death increased further for patients with 6-10 interrupted days (HR, 1.236; 95% CI, 1.137-1.345) and 11-15 interrupted days (HR, 1.259; 95% CI, 1.112-1.415).
Additional Points:
- Propensity-score matching was performed for 6,928 patients with 6 or more interrupted days, and for the same number of patients with fewer interrupted days.
- Patients with more interrupted days had a higher likelihood of death (HR, 1.037; 95% CI, 1.003-1.072).
Conclusion:
- The study emphasizes the need for minimizing treatment interruptions and the integration of prophylactic measures against radiation dermatitis and the exploration of alternative therapies to decrease acute radiation-related toxicities.
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Did You Know?
Triple-negative breast cancer accounts for approximately 10-15% of all breast cancers and is more likely to affect younger people, African Americans, and those with BRCA1 mutations.