In a major breakthrough which may prevent needless surgery, scientists claim to have developed a test that can predict whether women treated for an early form of breast cancer will develop dangerous tumours later in life.
Sufferers are often advised to undergo mastectomies, that is, removal of their breasts as a precaution. Now, an international team has devised the test that can successfully predict whether after initial treatment, the sufferers had a high or low risk of developing invasive cancer, the Daily Mail reported.
"Women will have much more information, so they can better know their risk of developing invasive cancer. It will lead to a more personalised approach to treatment.
"As many as 44 per cent of patients may not require any further treatment, and can rely instead on surveillance," Prof Karla Kerlikowske of California University , who led the research, was quoted as saying.
If a test is developed for wider use, doctors would be able to advise women about the need for extra treatment such as radiotherapy or hormonal drugs, say the scientists. The scientist, writing in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute , found that three biomarkers -- proteins and other molecules in breast tissue -- that can identify which women have double the risk of invasive cancer in later years.
It could benefit women with ductal carcinoma in situ -- cancer in cells lining the milk ducts that has not spread.
Sufferers are often advised to undergo mastectomies, that is, removal of their breasts as a precaution. Now, an international team has devised the test that can successfully predict whether after initial treatment, the sufferers had a high or low risk of developing invasive cancer, the Daily Mail reported.
"Women will have much more information, so they can better know their risk of developing invasive cancer. It will lead to a more personalised approach to treatment.
"As many as 44 per cent of patients may not require any further treatment, and can rely instead on surveillance," Prof Karla Kerlikowske of California University , who led the research, was quoted as saying.
If a test is developed for wider use, doctors would be able to advise women about the need for extra treatment such as radiotherapy or hormonal drugs, say the scientists. The scientist, writing in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute , found that three biomarkers -- proteins and other molecules in breast tissue -- that can identify which women have double the risk of invasive cancer in later years.
It could benefit women with ductal carcinoma in situ -- cancer in cells lining the milk ducts that has not spread.
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