Mucinous breast cancer – clinical characteristics and treatment results in patients treated at the Oncology Centre in Kraków between 1952 and 2002

AIM OF THE STUDY To present the characteristics and clinical outcomes in 94 patients with mucinous breast cancer treated at the Oncology Centre in Krakow between 1952 and 2002. MATERIAL AND METHODS Stage I or II carcinomas were found in 66 patients (69.4%) of the presented group and in the remaining 28 patients (29.8%) stage III disease was diagnosed. In 27 cases regional lymph nodes were involved. All patients had been treated with surgery: mastectomy (90 patients) or breast-conserving treatment (4 patients). Radiotherapy was administered in 14 patients, adjuvant chemo-therapy in 14 patients, and endocrine therapy in 39 patients. RESULTS The maximum follow-up was 257 months. Ten-year survival was as follows: 75.7% (overall survival), 82.5% (disease-free survival). During the follow-up, 4 patients developed local recurrence, 5 patients developed metastases. Second primary cancer was found in 8 patients. CONCLUSIONS The presented results confirm the good prognosis in patients treated for mucinous breast cancer. The diagnosis of early-stage breast cancer based on mammography can allow breast-conserving treatment.