Detection of local recurrence following breast-conserving treatment in young women with early breast cancer: optimization of long-term follow-up strategies.

The detection of a local recurrence (LR) in young women with breast cancer after breast-conserving treatment (BCT) was investigated to compare the impact of different long-term follow-up strategies. Between 1988 and 2005, 937 women aged ≤40 years were treated with BCT for early-stage breast cancer in the southern part of the Netherlands. Up to October 2009, 152 had developed an isolated LR.