Differences in clinicopathological characteristics, treatment, and survival outcomes between older and younger breast cancer patients

Abstract

Abstract In developing countries, breast cancer is diagnosed at a much younger age. In this study we investigate the dichotomies between older and young breast cancer patients in our region. The study involved two cohorts; older patients (≥ 65 years, n = 553) and younger ones (≤ 40 years, n = 417). Statistical models were used to investigate the associations between age groups, clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes. Compared to younger patients, older patients were more likely to present with advanced-stage disease (20.6% vs. 15.1%, p = .028). However, among those with non-metastatic disease, younger patients tended to have more aggressive pathological features, including positive axillary lymph nodes (73.2% vs. 55.6%, p < .001), T-3/4 (28.2% vs. 13.8%, p < .001) and HER2-positive disease (29.3% vs. 16.3%, p < .001). The 5-year overall survival (OS) rate was significantly better for the younger (72.1%) compared to the older (67.6%), p = .035. However, no significant difference was observed in disease-free survival (DFS) between the two groups.In conclusion, younger patients with breast cancer present with worse clinical and pathological features, albeit a better OS rate. The difference in DFS between the two groups was not insignificant, suggesting that older women were more likely to die from non-cancer related causes.