Breast cancer prognosis. I. Prognostic factors in patients with node-negative (N0) breast cancer.

Predictors of breast cancer survival were investigated among 196 node-negative (N0) breast cancer patients treated at the Department of Surgery of the University Hospital for Tumors in Zagreb between 1969-1988. Selected prognostic factors included patient age, delay in treatment, tumor size, histologic grade of malignancy, estrogen receptor status, progesterone receptor status, tumor site, and type of surgical treatment. Among these predictors, only tumor size (p < 0.001) and pathohistologic grade of malignancy (p < 0.001) caused significant differences in 5-year overall survival rates (T1-92.1%, T2-89.8%, T3-64.1% and T4-45.4%; grade I-95.0%; II-80.6%; III-63.6%). The authors conclude that among eight selected clinical characteristics, only tumor size and pathohistological malignancy grade can serve as helpful predictors in determination of the probability of 5-year overall survival among node-negative breast cancer patients.