Clinical course of 771 patients with bilateral breast cancer (BBC): Characteristics associated with overall and recurrence-free survival

546 Background: Women with a personal history of breast cancer have an annual incidence of 0.5–1% and a cumulative incidence from 3–20% of subsequently developing contralateral breast cancer. Despite numerous retrospective and case-control studies, risk factors related to overall (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) in BBC are still being defined. The purpose of our study was to describe tumor properties, patient characteristics, and method of cancer detection for a large cohort of BBC patients, and to assess the associations of these factors with OS and RFS. Methods: A retrospective chart review was conducted of the BCMS (Breast Cancer Management System) database at MD Anderson Cancer Center. Among BBC patients, we compared primary versus contralateral tumors and synchronous versus metachronous cancers. Patient and second tumor characteristics were evaluated for an association with OS and RFS, as measured from diagnosis of the second tumor. Results: Of 11,234 primary breast cancer patients seen for an...