SCIENCE@home

Modeling the effect of age in T1-2 breast cancer using the SEER database

P. Tai,G. Cserni,J. van de Steene,G. Vlastos,M. Voordeckers,M. Royce,Sang-Joon Lee,V. Vinh-Hung,G. Storme

Published 2005 in BMC Cancer

ABSTRACT

BackgroundModeling the relationship between age and mortality for breast cancer patients may have important prognostic and therapeutic implications.MethodsData from 9 registries of the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program (SEER) of the United States were used. This study employed proportional hazards to model mortality in women with T1-2 breast cancers. The residuals of the model were used to examine the effect of age on mortality. This procedure was applied to node-negative (N0) and node-positive (N+) patients. All causes mortality and breast cancer specific mortality were evaluated.ResultsThe relationship between age and mortality is biphasic. For both N0 and N+ patients among the T1-2 group, the analysis suggested two age components. One component is linear and corresponds to a natural increase of mortality with each year of age. The other component is quasi-quadratic and is centered around age 50. This component contributes to an increased risk of mortality as age increases beyond 50. It suggests a hormonally related process: the farther from menopause in either direction, the more prognosis is adversely influenced by the quasi-quadratic component. There is a complex relationship between hormone receptor status and other prognostic factors, like age.ConclusionThe present analysis confirms the findings of many epidemiological and clinical trials that the relationship between age and mortality is biphasic. Compared with older patients, young women experience an abnormally high risk of death. Among elderly patients, the risk of death from breast cancer does not decrease with increasing age. These facts are important in the discussion of options for adjuvant treatment with breast cancer patients.

PUBLICATION RECORD

CITATION MAP

EXTRACTION MAP

CLAIMS

  • No claims are published for this paper.

CONCEPTS

  • No concepts are published for this paper.

REFERENCES

Showing 1-24 of 24 references · Page 1 of 1

CITED BY

Showing 1-54 of 54 citing papers · Page 1 of 1