Abstract

From January 1, 1977 to December 31, 1988, 262 early-stage carcinomas of the breast received definitive radiotherapy after breast-conserving surgery at the Sammons Cancer Center, Baylor University Medical Center. The relapse-free, five-year survival rates (as calculated by the Kaplan-Meier method) for stages I and II were 79% and 75%, respectively; the overall survival rates at five years for stages I and II were 97% and 84%, respectively. New disease was observed after treatment in eight of 262 breasts (3%); five of these were located in another quadrant of the breast and were thought to represent second primary cancers. A review of the literature and the information gained from this series support the use of breast-conserving surgery combined with radiotherapy as an alternative to amputation for treatment of early-stage breast carcinoma.