Quality of life in patients with multicentric breast cancer

One of the main issues in the treatment of multicentric breast cancer (BC) is to choose the type of surgery (paying attention to the tendency to reduce the volume of surgical interventions). Many studies have demonstrated an adverse effect of this form of BC on long‑term survival outcomes (increased risk of recurrence, decreased overall survival rates, etc.). However, none of the studies examined the effect of surgery extent on the quality of life of these patients. Objective . To assess the effect of the surgery type on the quality of life of patients with multicentric BC. Materials and methods . 190 patients were included in the study. The median follow‑up was 72 (7–116) months. Age ranged from 27 to 76 years. The majority of patients (150 women, 78.9 %) had luminal HER2‑negative tumors, while «aggressive» (HER2‑overexpressing, triple negative) subtypes were detected in 40 (21.1 %) of them. 134 patients underwent radical mastectomy (40 of which also had immediate breast reconstruction), 56 received breast‑conserving surgery. Statistically significant differences were not observed among stages III and I–II BC (p = 0.125). The quality of life was assessed with the use of EORTC QLQ-C30 and EORTC QLQ-BR23 scales at ≥ 12 months after performing surgical treatment. Results . The quality of life was assessed depending on the type of surgical intervention. The patients after breastconserving surgery and immediate breast reconstruction demonstrated a significant advantage, primarily in the general perception of one's own health (p < 0.05) and emotional status (p < 0.05). Also, there were no significant differences in quality of life between the groups of patients after breast‑ conserving surgery and immediate breast reconstruction. Conclusion . Due to the increase in the life expectancy of breast cancer patients, the issues of maintaining a high quality of life are becoming increasingly important. From this point of view, performing breast‑ conserving and reconstructive surgeries is preferable for patients with multicentric BC.