Risk of myeloid neoplasms after radiotherapy among older women with localized breast cancer: A population-based study

<div><p>Background</p><p>There are inconsistent and limited data regarding the risk of myeloid neoplasms (MN) among breast cancer survivors who received radiotherapy (RT) in the absence of chemotherapy. Concern about subsequent MN might influence the decision to use adjuvant RT for women with localized disease. As patients with therapy-related MN have generally poor outcomes, the presumption of subsequent MN being therapy-related could affect treatment recommendations.</p><p>Methods</p><p>We used the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER)–Medicare linked database to study older women with in-situ or stage 1–3 breast cancer diagnosed 2001–2009 who received surgery. Chemotherapy and RT were ascertained using Medicare claims, and new MN diagnoses were captured using both SEER registry and Medicare claims. We excluded women who received chemotherapy for initial treatment, and censored at receipt of subsequent chemotherapy. Competing-risk survival analysis was used to assess the association between RT and risk of subsequent MN adjusting for relevant characteristics.</p><p>Results</p><p>Median follow-up for 60,426 eligible patients was 68 months (interquartile range, 46 to 92 months), with 47.6% receiving RT. In total, 316 patients (0.52%) were diagnosed with MN; the cumulative incidence per 10,000 person-years was 10.6 vs 9.0 among RT-treated vs non-RT-treated women, respectively (p = .004); the increased risk of subsequent MN persisted in the adjusted analysis (hazard ratio = 1.36, 95% confidence interval: 1.03–1.80). The results were consistent in multiple sensitivity analyses.</p><p>Conclusions</p><p>Our data suggest that RT is associated with a significant risk of subsequent MN among older breast cancer survivors, though the absolute risk increase is very small. These findings suggest the benefits of RT outweigh the risks of development of subsequent MN.</p></div

Adjusted cumulative incidence of myeloid neoplasm (MN) for localized breast cancer among older women stratified by receipt of radiation therapy.

<p>Source: SEER-Medicare. Source: SEER-Medicare. Abbreviations: RT: Radiation Therapy, BCS: Breast Conserving Surgery, MDS: myelodysplastic syndromes, AML: acute myeloid leukemia. Model adjusted for age, race, marital status, income, education, metropolitan status, comorbidity, disability, anemia, stage, grade, tumor size, node involvement, tumor laterality, hormone receptors, receipt of BCS, Medicaid coverage, year of breast diagnosis and geographic region.</p

The effect of radiation therapy on subsequent myeloid neoplasms after breast cancer according to data source (N = 60,426).

<p>The effect of radiation therapy on subsequent myeloid neoplasms after breast cancer according to data source (N = 60,426).</p

Characteristics of study sample, stratified by receipt of radiation therapy.

<p>Characteristics of study sample, stratified by receipt of radiation therapy.</p

The effect of radiation therapy on subsequent myeloid neoplasm (MN) after breast cancer.

<p>The effect of radiation therapy on subsequent myeloid neoplasm (MN) after breast cancer.</p