Trends in survival of stage IV breast cancer (BC) among Caucasian and African American (AA) BC patients (pts)

1000 Background: The aim of this review was to look at the trends in survival over time in patients(pts) with de novo stage IV BC and to identify factors that impact survival. Methods: We searched the SEER registry to identify pts with de novo stage IV breast cancer diagnosed between 1988 and 2003. Pts who were male, did not have microscopic confirmation of disease, had more than one primary, and who had a prior malignancy were excluded. Pts were divided into three groups based on their year of diagnosis separated into 5-year intervals: 1988 - 1993, 1994 - 1998, and 1999 -2003. Overall survival (OS) and BC specific survival (BCS) were calculated from the date of diagnosis to the date of death, last follow-up, or 12/31/03. Survival outcomes were estimated by the Kaplan-Meier method, and Cox models were fit to determine the characteristics that were independently associated with survival. Follow-up time was censored at 3 years for Cox analyses. Results: 15,438 pts were identified. 3796 pts were diagnosed fr...