US Pharm. 2020;45(10):14.

It has been estimated that, in women, 276,480 new cases of breast cancer would be diagnosed and 42,170 deaths would occur in 2020. In 2017, according to Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) data, the rate of new breast cancer cases per 100,000 women was 128.11; the death rate was 19.81; and the 5-year survival rate was 91.8%. These parameters have improved since 2010, as evidenced by a 1.5% drop in new cases, a 9.4% decline in mortality, and a 0.8% increase in 5-year survival.


Survival Rates by Race/Ethnicity: For breast cancer diagnosed between 2000 and 2016, SEER 5-year survival rates were 90.9%, 90.5%, 87.5%, 87.2%, and 80.1%, respectively, among Asian/Pacific Islander, white, American Indian/Alaska Native, Hispanic, and black women. Across all races/ethnicities, 10-year survival rates were lower than 5-year survival rates. However, increased survival was noted in specific racial/ethnic groups, including black (10.5%), Hispanic (9.5%), Asian/Pacific Islander (6.6%), American Indian/Alaska Native (6.6%), and white women (6.1%).

Invasive Disease: For women with Paget’s disease of the breast and invasive cancer in the same breast, 5-year relative survival declined with increasing cancer stage (stage I, 95.8%; stage II, 77.7%; stage III, 46.3%; stage IV, 14.3%). From 2000 to 2016, survival was highest in women with invasive disease across all stages for 5 years (90.2%) and 10 years (85.1%); stratified by age, the highest rate was seen in women aged 50 to 64 years, followed by those aged younger than 50 years and those aged 65 years and older, respectively. Women aged 65 years and older with localized breast cancer had a 100% survival rate at 5 years, and a rate of 97.1% at 10 years. A drop in survival occurred (from 98% to 96% and 96.6% to 93.4%) in women aged 50 to 64 years and younger than 50 years, respectively.

Localized, Regional, and Distant Stages: In women aged 65 years and older with regional breast cancer, the 5-year survival rate was 19.1% less than for localized disease, and 11.4% and 10.9% lower in those aged 50 to 64 years and younger than 50 years, respectively. For 10-year survival, the pattern was similar in women with regional breast cancer; rates were 17.3%, 18.5%, and 28.5% less than for localized disease in women aged 65 years and older, 50 to 64 years, and younger than 50 years, respectively. The survival rate was worst across all age groups in women with distant breast cancer. In women aged 50 years and older, the survival rate was 19.9% less than for those aged 50 to 64 years than in those aged 65 years and older (from 71.9% to 57.6%).

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