Breast cancer treatment in the elderly: Do treatment plans that do not conform to NCCN recommendations lead to worse outcomes?

Background: Aging remains one of the greatest risk factors for development of new breast cancer with more than 30% of breast cancers occurring after the age of 75. Elderly women have been found to not conform with all aspects of treatment recommendations. Our study compared outcomes of elderly breast cancer patients whose treatment did or did not conform to NCCN guidelines.

Octogenarians: noncompliance with breast cancer treatment recommendations.

Recent research suggests that women older than 70 years of age with early breast cancer who choose lumpectomy may forgo radiation if they take antihormonal medication. However, many elderly patients choose to forgo both radiation and hormonal therapy. This study assessed treatment compliance in elderly patients with breast cancer.