Test for Breast Cancer Recurrence
Most breast cancer recurrences appear within five years of completion of successful treatment; but there remains a 10 percent chance of recurrence for up to 10 years. If prior treatment did not involve total removal of breast tissue, the cancer may recur at or near the same location as the original lesion.
Significance
It is important to understand that the cancer may not return to the breast area but to a distant site, such as the lungs or liver. The entire body must be considered to be at risk for cancer recurrence.
Testing
In 2007, the Food and Drug Administration approved MammaPrint as a test to determine the risk of breast cancer recurrence. The test analyzes gene activity on a molecular level and is used with other clinical information to determine not only breast cancer recurrence risk but course of treatment.
Features
MammaPrint requires a sample of tissue from the removed breast cancer tumor. The sample is analyzed and results are reported in approximately 10 days.
Benefits
This test for breast cancer recurrence will classify a patient as either low or high risk. With this information, the physician can better devise a course of treatment and follow-up.
Considerations
The MammaPrint test for breast cancer recurrence risk is most appropriate for use in patients who are under 61 years old, with no lymph node involvement of the cancer and with cancer in either stage one or stage two.
Tags: breast cancer, cancer recurrence, breast cancer recurrence, cancer recurrence risk, course treatment, MammaPrint test
