Management of locally recurrent breast cancer

Locoregional recurrences occur commonly in women with breast cancer and often have grave prognostic implications. Major controversies exist concerning the prophylaxis, implications, and treatment of such relapses and are the focus of this review.

The relevant medical literature was reviewed and analyzed.

Locoregional recurrences may be prevented by postoperative radiation therapy; however, this has little impact on survival. Postoperative systemic therapy prevents locoregional relapse, but less efficiently than radiation therapy. When these modalities are combined, radiation therapy often is delayed until after several cycles of chemotherapy. Optimal sequencing remains controversial. Most patients with locoregional relapses have an exceedingly poor outlook. Radiation therapy provides excellent local control; however, the addition of combination chemotherapy should be considered for patients with defined poor prognostic features. The clinical impact of recurrence in the breast after breast-conserving primary treatment now is emerging. Such local relapses do not have the dreaded prognostic implications of locoregional relapse after mastectomy, but are a marker for an increased risk of dissemination. Standard therapy in this setting remains mastectomy. Additional breast-conserving surgery may be considered in the context of clinical trials for patients with certain favorable features. Conversely, some local relapses after breast-conserving surgery have a poorer prognosis, and the addition of adjuvant systemic therapy should be considered in addition to mastectomy.

The heterogenous nature of locoregional relapses has made it difficult to conduct prospective randomized clinical trials. However, many retrospective data exist, making it possible to recommend rational treatment approaches for these patients.