OBJECTIVETo study the clinical and pathological characteristics of operable breast cancer in women over 65 years.

METHODSThe data of 95 patients treated from February 2003 to February 2005 were collected, and the clinicopathological characteristics were retrospectively analyzed.

RESULTSThese 95 patients accounted for 26.1% of all female breast cancer patients registered in our hospital in the mean time. Local advanced breast cancer accounted for 74.5% of the patients. The median time from symptom presentation to treatment seeking was 1.2 years. Curative resection was performed in 96 breasts of 94 patients, 71 patients received chemotherapy and 67 received endocrine therapy. Sixty-four cases (67.3%) were confirmed invasive ductal carcinoma. Positive expression of estrogen or progesterone receptor was found in 65 cases (68.4%); overexpression of C-erbB-2 was found in 23.5% of the patients and low level expression of Ki-67 (<30%) was found in 54.1% of the cases, respectively. The 3-year overall survival rate and disease free survival rate was 87.4% and 71.4%, respectively.

CONCLUSIONSOf the breast cancer in aged women, most are local advanced breast cancer. Breast cancer in the elderly women has distinctive clinicopathological characteristics. Less radical surgery combined with adjuvant chemotherapy and(or) endocrine therapy is feasible treatment.