CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS OF RISK AND PROGNOSTIC FACTORS IN PATIENTS WITH BREAST CARCINOMAS

Cancer of the breast is one of the most common human neoplasm, many environmental, personal and genetic factors have been implicated as a risk factors to develop breast cancer. Tumor size, histological subtype, grading, lympho-vascular permeation, and lymph node involvement are the cardinal independent factors influence prognosis and response to different therapeutic modalities. Among other prognostic factors, ER/PR status, Her2 oncogen, DCIS/invasive component ratio, and local tumor spread are highly impact prognosis and systemic anticancer therapy. Recently some molecular markers came out to the scene, as p53 mutations and Bcl-2 amplification, which can be detected by gene-expression profiling, are associated with higher probability of tumor recurrence and low overall survival. In fact, different molecular and histological subgroups show variable prognosis and different response to chemotherapy and other treatment regimes. Finally, we are looking for further studies to improve current prognostic markers that will reflect on better treatment tools.