[Inflammatory cancer of the breast]

The so-called inflammatory carcinoma of the breast is a rare condition characterized, in almost every case, by metastatic diffusion in numerous organs. Clinical criteria are indispensable to establish a diagnosis which is not ruled out by a negative skin biopsy. Radiotherapy or surgery, or both, gives disappointing results with a median survival of about 18 months and a 5-year survival rate of 5%. It is unanimously agreed that adding chemotherapy to these methods improves local control and increases the 5-year survival rate. The optimal treatment remains to be determined by co-operative studies.