Carcinoma of the breast in women aged 35 or less

Breast cancer in young women is an unusual problem which has acquired a poor prognostic reputation in the eyes of many clinicians. We have reviewed all 59 patients with malignant disease of the breast aged 35 years or less managed in the Breast Unit at Charing Cross Hospital between 1974 and 1984. After exclusion of 5 patients (2 with lymphomas, I with fibrosarcoma, and 2 with inadequate available data), 54 patients were available for analysis. More than 3 months delay from first symptoms to presentation was seen in 45 per cent and 36 per cent were considered ‘late’ at initial clinical staging (T3–4, N2–3 or M1). Nevertheless, a 5‐year survival of 66 per cent was seen among the 29 patients with sufficient length of follow‐up. Distribution among the main histological types was very similar to that found in a consecutive series of 264 breast cancers of all age groups in our unit. We conclude that breast carcinomas in young patients do not significantly differ in type or behaviour from other age groups and that with treatment similar to other premenopausal patients, a prognosis comparable to older patients can be expected.