Reoperations after primary breast conserving surgery in women with invasive breast cancer in Catalonia, Spain: a retrospective study

Readmissions and complications in breast ductal carcinoma in situ: A retrospective study comparing screen- and non-screen-detected patients

Objective:

Population-wide mammographic screening programs aim to reduce breast cancer mortality. However, a broad view of the harms and benefits of these programs is necessary to favor informed decisions, especially in the earliest stages of the disease. Here, we compare the outcomes of patients diagnosed with breast ductal carcinoma in situ in participants and non-participants of a population-based mammographic screening program.

Methods:

A retrospective cohort study of all patients diagnosed with breast ductal carcinoma in situ between 2000 and 2010 within a single hospital. A total of 211 patients were included, and the median follow-up was 8.4 years. The effect of detection mode (screen-detected and non-screen-detected) on breast cancer recurrences, readmissions, and complications was evaluated through multivariate logistic regression analysis.

Results:

In the majority of women, breast ductal carcinoma in situ was screen-detected (63.5%). Screen-detected breast ductal carcinoma in situ was smaller in size compared to those non-screen-detected (57.53% < 20 mm versus 78.03%, p = 0.002). Overall, breast-conserving surgery was the most frequent surgery (86.26%); however, mastectomy was higher in non-screen-detected breast ductal carcinoma in situ (20.78% versus 9.7%, p = 0.024). Readmissions for mastectomy were more frequent in non-screen-detected breast ductal carcinoma in situ. Psychological complications, such as fatigue, anxiety, and depression, had a prevalence of 15% within our cohort. Risk of readmissions and complications was higher within the non-screen-detected group, as evidenced by an odds ratio = 6.25 (95% confidence interval = 1.95–19.99) for readmissions and an odds ratio = 2.41 (95% confidence interval = 1.95–4.86) for complications.

Conclusions:

Our findings indicate that women with breast ductal carcinoma in situ breast cancer diagnosed through population-based breast cancer screening program experience a lower risk of readmissions and complications than those diagnosed outside these programs. These findings can help aid women and health professionals make informed decisions regarding screening.

The Value of Repeated Breast Surgery as a Quality Indicator in Breast Cancer Care

Breast-conserving surgery, a major achievement in surgical oncology, has allowed an increasing number of breast cancer patients to avoid the mutilation of mastectomy. However, mastectomy still is performed in certain circumstances although breast-conserving surgery would be equally safe. Many reasons, including patients' and surgeons' personal motivations, influence the decision-making process before the final choice between breast preservation and mastectomy. The importance of quality measurement and reporting in medicine is increasingly recognized, and breast surgery is no exception. The substantial variability of re-excision rates for positive surgical margins after a first attempt at breast-conserving surgery suggests that improvement is possible. Therefore, the re-excision rate has been proposed as a quality metric for assessing and comparing the performance of different institutions. Indeed, re-excision rates can be reduced by actionable factors such as accurate preoperative local staging, localization of occult lesions, and intraoperative assessment of the oriented specimen. However, equally important non-actionable risk factors pertaining the biology, detectability, and resectability of the tumor also should be taken into account. Therefore, if the re-excision rate has to be used as a performance indicator of breast surgical care, critical interpretation of results with accurate case-mix adjustment are mandatory, and reasonable targets must be appropriately set so that surgeons treating patients at higher risk of positive margins are not unduly penalized.

MRI predictors of tumor-positive margins after breast-conserving surgery

PURPOSE

The purpose of this study is to identify predictors of tumor-positive surgical margins after breast-conserving surgery on dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) MRI.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We conducted a retrospective study of consecutive women who underwent DCE MRI before breast-conserving surgery from 2005 to 2014. Patient demographics, indication for surgery, MRI findings, biopsy pathology results, and surgical outcomes were reviewed. The unpaired t-test and chi-square test were used to compare the positive and negative margins groups.

RESULTS

554 women (mean age, 56; range, 26-90) underwent DCE MRI before 575 breast-conserving surgeries for invasive carcinoma (n = 473) or ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) (n = 102). Positive margins requiring re-excision occurred in 19.7% (93/473) of surgeries for invasive carcinoma and 31.4% (32/102) of surgeries for DCIS. For invasive carcinoma surgeries, positive margins were more common when MRI demonstrated the finding of non-mass enhancement (NME) rather than the finding of enhancing mass (33.8% [22/65] versus 16.9% [61/360], p < 0.01). Tumor size on MRI was significantly larger in the positive margins group (2.5 cm versus 1.9 cm, p < 0.001). Positive margins were more common with invasive lobular rather than invasive ductal histology at core biopsy (38.3% [18/47] versus 16.0% [56/350], p < 0.001). For DCIS surgeries, there were no significant differences in positive margin rates related to MRI features.

CONCLUSION

For invasive carcinoma surgeries, positive margins are associated with NME on MRI, larger tumor size on MRI, and lobular histology at core biopsy. These findings may be used to predict which patients are at risk for positive margins after breast-conserving surgery.

Reoperation after breast-conserving surgery for cancer in Australia: statewide cohort study of linked hospital data

OBJECTIVES

To investigate between-hospital variation in the probability of reoperation within 90 days of initial breast-conserving surgery (BCS), and the contribution of health system-level and other factors.

DESIGN

Population-based, retrospective cohort study.

SETTING

New South Wales (NSW), Australia.

PARTICIPANTS

Linked administrative hospitalisation data were used to define a cohort of adult women undergoing initial BCS for breast cancer in NSW between 1 July 2002 and 31 December 2013.

PRIMARY OUTCOME MEASURES

Multilevel, cross-classified models with patients clustered within hospitals and residential areas were used to examine factors associated with any reoperation, and either re-excision or mastectomy, within 90 days.

RESULTS

Of 34 458 women undergoing BCS, 29.1% underwent reoperation within 90 days, half of which were mastectomies. Overall, the probability of reoperation decreased slightly over time. However, there were divergent patterns by reoperation type; the probability of re-excision increased alongside a concomitant decrease in the probability of mastectomy. Significant between-hospital variation was observed. Non-metropolitan location and surgery at low-volume hospitals were associated with a higher overall probability of reoperation, and of mastectomy specifically, after accounting for patient-level factors, calendar year and area-level socioeconomic status. The magnitude of association with geographical location and surgical volume decreased over time.

CONCLUSIONS

Reoperation rates within 90 days of BCS varied significantly between hospitals. For women undergoing mastectomy after BCS, this represents a dramatic change in clinical course. Multilevel modelling suggests unwarranted clinical variation may be an issue, likely due to disparities in access to multidisciplinary breast cancer care and preoperative diagnostic procedures. However, the observed reduction in disparities over time is encouraging and indicates that guidelines and policy initiatives have the potential to improve regional breast cancer care.