Study Shows Early-Stage Breast Cancer Patients Can Skip Radiation

Women with early-stage breast cancer at intermediate risk can avoid radiation therapy after surgery without harming their long-term survival chances. Researchers followed over 1,600 women for nearly a decade, with half receiving post-surgery radiation and half going without. After 9.6 years, survival rates were nearly identical at 81.4% for the radiation group and 81.9% for those without radiation. Lead investigator Dr. Ian Kunkler stated, “We’ve now shown that with contemporary anti-cancer treatments, the risk of recurrence is very, very low—sufficiently low to avoid radiotherapy in most patients.” While radiation reduced chest wall cancer returns from 2.5% to 1.1%, both rates remained low. The findings support reduced radiation use as other treatments become more effective at preventing recurrence. (Story URL)