Neoadjuvant therapy for breast cancer treatment: an expert panel recommendation from the Brazilian Society of Breast Surgeons 2018.

Purpose: Breast cancer neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) consists of the administration of cytotoxic and targeted drugs prior to breast surgery, with the objective of reducing the tumor burden to allow breast conservation. NAC also aims to improve long-term treatment outcomes such as disease-free and overall survival. To optimize clinical practice with the best available evidence for breast cancer patients in the setting of neoadjuvant treatment, the Brazilian Society of Breast Surgeons (Sociedade Brasileira de Mastologia-SBM) held a consensus conference to develop this guideline.

Methods: Twenty-two questions addressing relevant breast cancer neoadjuvant treatment were previously formulated. The voting panel comprised 25 specialists from the SBM. A consensus was established if there was 75% agreement. If there was less concordance, after discussion, the consensus was determined by a 51% concordance.

Results: The recommendations were based on the best level of scientific evidence and the opinion from breast cancer experts, when no such research data were available.

Conclusion: This manuscript provides updated guidance according to the views of the SBM's experts for the clinical practice of breast cancer surgeons. This manuscript depicts the summarized recommendations for NAC treatment.