Partial Breast Reirradiation for Patients With Ipsilateral Breast Tumor Recurrence After Initial Treatment With...

Accelerated partial breast irradiation (APBI), including intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT), is an evidence-based treatment option in patients undergoing breast conserving surgery (BCS) for early-stage breast cancer. However, literature regarding reirradiation for patients with ipsilateral breast tumor recurrences (IBTR) is limited. This prospective study assessed the feasibility and efficacy of using APBI in patients who had prior whole breast irradiation.

This was a single institution, prospective study of patients who were previously treated with BCS and adjuvant whole breast radiation. At the time of enrollment, all had unifocal IBTR, histologically confirmed invasive ductal carcinoma with negative margins after repeat BCS. Patients received either IORT in a single fraction at time of BCS or MammoSite brachytherapy twice daily over 5 days. Follow-up data and patient surveys were collected at 1, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months, then annually for at least a 5-year period.

From 2008 to 2014, 13 patients were enrolled. Median time to recurrence after initial course of radiation was 12.5 years. Median follow-up after retreatment was 7.8 years. One patient in the IORT group had a subsequent tumor bed recurrence, yielding a local control of 92%. One patient had distant recurrence. At baseline, 680 reported excellent-good cosmesis compared with 42% at 5 years. All patients indicated total satisfaction with overall treatment experience.

APBI using IORT was well tolerated with excellent local control and may be a reasonable alternative to mastectomy for IBTR. Further study is needed to determine the most suitable candidates for this approach.