Any studies that prove early detection of stage IV recurrence extending survival time?
Dear All,
Can you please point me to any studies that show that early detection of metastatic stage IV breast cancer results in longer survival ? If this matters, I'm talking about ER+. HER2-.
I know that the standard of care dictates that early detection of such recurrence does not result in longer life, but are there any studies that prove otherwise?
Thank you.
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Good question!
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Really hoping for anyone knowledgeable to chime in.
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I'm not a cancer researcher but did statistical analysis of veterinary research which sometimes was related to human disease. This study is a more recent publication (2021) which supports the standard of care which is based on older studies. It considers tumor markers and modern imaging but does not address circulating tumor cells.
There are probably no studies that answer the question posed because the data required to answer it is not collected and available for analysis according to this article.
“Currently there are no reliable data on the risk of metastatic breast cancer recurrence after a non-metastatic breast cancer diagnosis, because registries do not routinely collect information on cancer progression or recurrence,” Mariotto explained. (https://www.oncozine.com/novel-statistical-method-estimates-time-to-metastasis-of-breast-cancer/)
The ultimate goal is to prevent metastatic recurrence rather than catch it early. Instead of focusing on CTCs researchers are trying to destroy rogue cells when they are dormant in bone marrow. Trials like PALAVY and Penn- SURMOUNT look promising but bone marrow biopsies are invasive and expensive. While blood tests are less invasive and cheaper, once cancer cells are circulating in the blood there is no way of telling early on which organ might have been invaded by a cancer cell which will survive and multiply.
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I know they don’t routinely check for metastases after treatment for early stage BC because it supposedly doesn’t impact survival rates. However, it seems to me that earlier detection of mets would have some advantages. Like treatment before symptoms appear so there’s better quality of life. I had no symptoms when diagnosed stage 4, it was found on a CT scan that I had for another reason. So far, 2 1/2 years later I still have no symptoms.
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I agree that early detection can lead to better QOL. It’s longer survival time that hasn’t been shown. Some might disagree but I think QOL is more important. I hope you remain symptom free for a long time.
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