Cancer of the breast in young women.

Between 1966 and 1986, 126 women below the age of 35 years were treated for cancer of the breast. The course of the disease in this group was compared to that in patients aged between 35 and 55 years, and in those aged 55 years and over. The 5-year survival was 51.7% below 35, 63% between 35 and 55, and 73.5% in patients aged > or = 55 years. Negative or positive findings of axillary lymph nodes decisively affect the survival. The authors found no interpretation for the poor prognosis of breast cancer of young women.