During the 50th annual meeting of the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology that was held Sunday in Boston, study results showing that nodal radiation of both axillary and supraclavicular lymph nodes is not necessary in women with pathologically node-negative breast tumors that have been previously surgically removed were presented by researchers.

Dr. Penny Anderson, attending physician in the radiation oncology department at Fox Chase Cancer Center, Boston, along with her fellow colleagues, looked at 64 women with node-negative breast cancer who had undergone a mastectomy, monitoring them  for a period of 78 months. The patients had received radiation treatment follwing the extirpation of a larger than five centimeters breast tumour. Of the women, 53 had radiation therapy only to the chest wall, while the other eleven women underwent, in addition, regional lymph nodes radiation treatment. After evaluation, doctors found that the reoccurence rate for lymph nodes in patients who had not received the additional radiation therapy was very low, only one of the 53 women developing a recurrence in an axillary lymph node.

Dr. Penny Anderson stated that, at the moment, radiation treatment following a mastectomy that has removed a 5 or more centimeters large tumor is recommended by most oncologists, although there has not been any cogent evidence that this might improve survival. Moreover, regional node radiotherapy could give rise to pulmonary toxicity and lymphedema, which is also known as lymphatic obstruction, a condition of localized fluid retention that can easily evolve into an infection in the affected limb if it is not treated in due time.

The study’s findings come shortly after Canadian researchers revealed that shorter radiation time of about three weeks following a lumpectomy, which is a non-invasive, breast-preserving procedure that involves surgically removing a tumor in a patient’s breast, is as effective as the standard five to seven weeks of chemotherapy.

Breast cancer is the second most common type of cancer worldwide after lung cancer, accounting for 10.4% of all cancer incidence. It can affect men and women alike , since both the male and the female breasts are composed of the same tissue. Nevertheless, breast cancer in men is approximately 100 times less common than in women, but the survival rates are the same for both genders.

Currently, radiation therapy is standard treatment for women who have undergone either a lumpectomy or a mastectomy. The latter procedure involves removing one or both breast of the patient. The treatment uses high-energy X-rays or gamma rays aimed at killing cancer cells that might remain after the surgical procedure or that could reoccur on the post-surgery tumor site. The treatment is generally given over a period of five to seven weeks, five days a week. Each session lasts about 15 minutes.