Breast cancer in pregnant and lactating women

Between 1988 and 1991, we treated 595 women with breast cancer in the Breast Disease Section of the Cancer Research Foundation of Pakistan. We report here on 61 patients who were pregnant or lactating. Most patients presented at a late stage of disease because of ignorance, social taboos, or fear of hospitalization and operation. The largest diameter of the breast mass at presentation was 15 cm. Lymph nodes were involved in 70.5% of cases. Multiparity, young marriages, malnutrition, and unhygienic conditions are ripe in the rural environment of Pakistan. No oral contraceptives are used. Modern and conventional methods of treatment did not increase the survival rate of these cancer patients.