[Clinico-epidemiological findings in breast carcinoma in elderly patients]

Old age certainly represents one of the major risk factors for the development of neoplasia. In breast cancer the incidence rises with age and continues until the age of 84. In EEC countries approximately 140,000 new cases are reported every year and at the end of the 80s there were 10,983 deaths from breast cancer in Italy, an increase of over per 1000 women each year. Fifty par cent of new cases were diagnosed in women aged over 65. The efficiency of a screening programme is evaluated by the fall in mortality rates in the population included in the programme compared to that not included. Results from controlled studies have confirmed the efficacy of breast cancer screening in women aged between 50-70, showing a significant drop in mortality rates which range between 21 and 36%. Adequate diagnostic and therapeutic management are of primary importance and screening programmes are organised in highly efficient structures using specifically trained staff. This underlines the need to set up appropriate services and structures for the prevention and treatment of breast cancer in elderly women, given that the latter represent the most frequently affected age group. Old age should be considered a natural extension of life and all elderly women have the right to receive treatment to prevent breast cancer.