Stage-specific five-year survival outcomes in women treated for early stage breast cancer in Ibadan, Nigeria

Background: The disparity between the overall survival of breast cancer between high-income countries (HICs) and low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) has been majorly attributed to the high rate of diagnosis of Early Stage Breast Cancer (ESBC) in HICs, with about three-quarters and one-fifth of the total breast cancerpatients diagnosed with ESBC in HICs and LMICs respectively. The median 5-year survival rate of ESBC in HICs is 86% while it is about 72% in Sub-Saharan Africa. Objectives:> To determine stage-specific five-year survival outcomes in women treated for ESBC. Methods: We conducted a longitudinal, cohort study to assess the treatment and outcome of ESBC in a Nigerian tertiary hospital. Patients diagnosed and treatedfor ESBC over 5 years were recruited and followed up for a minimum of 5 years after treatment. Clinicopathologic parameters, disease progression and known vital status, were retrieved. A 5% level of significance was used. Results: 67(9.6%)patients of 694 new cases of breast cancer seen over the study duration was treated for ESBC, of whichsixty- three (63) were followed up over the specified follow-up period. The mean age was 43(10) years. Based on the American Joint Committee on Cancer staging, 9 patients were stage I A, 16 stage IB, 16 stage IIA and 26 stage IIB respectively. The overall 5-year survival was 77.8%. Conclusion: The survival pattern of our cohort fairly compares with reports in HICs, despite the challenges faced in the multimodal treatment protocol received by our patients