Background:The lengthening of the lifespan led to an increase in breast cancer (BC) diagnosed in very old age, but the treatment recommendations in this patient group usually lack evidence-based practice. We conducted a prospective observational monocentric study specifically targeting patients diagnosed with invasive BC at 80 years of age or older.Methods:We enrolled 88 patients consecutively observed for a new BC diagnosis at 80 years or older. The aim was to investigate progression-free (PFS) and overall survival (OS), with a long follow-up period, along with clinico-pathological characteristics of the population.Results:At the end of the 5-year follow-up, the estimated OS and PFS probabilities were 82.9% (95% CI: 71.3–95.3%) and 64.0% (95% CI: 51.7–79.2%), respectively. After 8.5 years from the BC diagnosis, 48.9% died. The cause of death was BC in 32.6% of patients, different from BC in 13.9%, and unknown in the remaining. Surgery was performed in 69.3% of the cases and was associated with improved 12-month PFS (p< 0.001). Adjuvant systemic therapy and radiotherapy were omitted in 32% and 93% of eligible patients, respectively. A higher rate of metastatic disease at the diagnosis was observed in comparison with data described in younger people, as well as a significantly high rate of drop-out (27.3%).Conclusions:Ultra-old patients have a not negligible life expectancy; therefore, the oncologic treatment should be optimal and should adequately fight BC, always considering the quality of life of these frail patients. Future research should focus on developing personalized treatment protocols that incorporate comprehensive geriatric assessments and quality-of-life metrics. Additionally, larger, multicentric studies are needed to validate our findings and explore the role of emerging therapies in this age group.
背景：随着预期寿命的延长，高龄乳腺癌（BC）的诊断率有所上升，但针对这一患者群体的治疗建议通常缺乏循证医学依据。我们开展了一项前瞻性观察性单中心研究，专门针对80岁及以上被诊断为浸润性乳腺癌的患者。 方法：我们连续纳入了88例80岁及以上新诊断为乳腺癌的患者。研究旨在通过长期随访，探讨该人群的无进展生存期（PFS）和总生存期（OS），并分析其临床病理特征。 结果：在5年随访结束时，估计的OS和PFS概率分别为82.9%（95% CI：71.3–95.3%）和64.0%（95% CI：51.7–79.2%）。自乳腺癌诊断后8.5年，48.9%的患者死亡。其中32.6%的患者死因为乳腺癌，13.9%死于非乳腺癌原因，其余患者死因不明。69.3%的病例接受了手术治疗，且手术与12个月PFS的改善相关（p < 0.001）。在符合条件的患者中，分别有32%和93%未接受辅助全身治疗和放疗。与年轻患者数据相比，本组患者在诊断时转移性疾病的比例更高，且脱落率显著较高（27.3%）。 结论：超高龄患者具有不可忽视的预期寿命；因此，肿瘤治疗应力求最佳，并有效对抗乳腺癌，同时始终需考虑这些虚弱患者的生活质量。未来研究应侧重于制定个性化的治疗方案，纳入全面的老年评估和生活质量指标。此外，需要开展更大规模的多中心研究以验证我们的发现，并探索新兴疗法在这一年龄群体中的作用。
肿瘤(癌症)患者之家