Haemostatic abnormalities and outcome in patients with operable breast cancer

The predictive value for cancer recurrence of five measurements of haemostatic activity was studied in 89 patients with operable breast cancer. Neither preoperative nor sequential measurements up to 9 months postoperatively of fibrinopeptide A, fibrin fragment B beta 15-42, fibrinogen and serum fibrin(ogen) degradation products nor the fibrin plate lysis assay correlated with early recurrent disease. B beta 15-42 values were higher preoperatively in patients with oestrogen receptor positive tumours (P = 0.017). Mean B beta 15-42 values rose postoperatively (P = 0.003), largely because of an increase in patients with oestrogen receptor negative tumours.