Breast Cancer Screening Knowledge and Perceived Health Beliefs among Immigrant Women in Korea / 한국유방암학회지

PURPOSE: Recently, through international marriage, immigrant women have rapidly increased throughout Korea. This study was performed to identify health beliefs and practices related to breast cancer screening in immigrant women in Korea. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was carried out between March and July 2012, and study population included immigrant females from six other Asian countries (Cambodia, China, Japan, Mongolia, Vietnam, and the Philippines). We surveyed 197 women and categorized them into four groups according to home countries. The questionnaire consisted of 55 items, including demographic and socioeconomic factors, breast cancer-related knowledge regarding risk factors and symptoms, beliefs and attitudes towards health and breast cancer, perceived susceptibility, barriers, and benefits of screening. RESULTS: Japanese participants were significantly older and had resided in Korea for more years than other country-of-origin groups (all p<0.001), and showed higher screening rates without statistical significance (p=0.392). In multivariate analysis, country of origin showed a significant correlation with knowledge (p=0.001), positive beliefs (p=0.002), and perceived benefits (p=0.025) of breast cancer screening. The group with the lowest household income showed a significantly lower score of perceived benefits (p=0.022). Through analysis to identify factors affecting participation in screening mammography, we found that education level (p=0.009), occupation status (p=0.006), and Korean language fluency (p=0.002) were independent predictors for screening behavior. CONCLUSION: This study identified conditions related to breast cancer screening knowledge, perception, and behavior of immigrant women in Korea. The results reflect the need for increased social aids to remove barriers to medical services and more educational programs to facilitate higher rates of screening.

Neoadjuvant human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 targeted therapy in patients with locally advanced breast cancer / 대한외과학회지

PURPOSE: We analyzed the responses of patients with locally advanced breast cancer to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) and NAC combined with neoadjuvant human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER2) targeted therapy (NCHTT). METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed 59 patients with HER2 amplified locally advanced breast cancer among patients who were treated surgically after neoadjuvant therapy at Samsung Medical Center between 2005 and 2009. Thirty-one patients received conventional NAC and 28 patients received NCHTT. Pathologic responses were assessed according to response evaluation criteria in solid tumors (RECIST) guidelines. RESULTS: Pathologic complete response (pCR) was achieved in 13 out of 28 patients treated with NCHTT and in 6 out of 31 patients treated with NAC alone (46.4% vs. 19.4%, respectively, P = 0.049). Breast conserving surgery (BCS) was more frequently performed in the NCHTT group than in the NAC only group (71.4% vs. 19.4%, P < 0.001). The 3-year recurrence-free survival (RFS) rate was 100% in the NCHTT group and 76.4% in the NAC group (P = 0.014). Together, NCHTT, type of operation (BCS vs. mastectomy) and pathologic nodal status were significant prognostic factors for RFS in univariate analysis. CONCLUSION: We found that NCHTT produced higher pCR rates than NAC alone in locally advanced breast cancer.

Does Immediate Breast Reconstruction after Mastectomy affect the Initiation of Adjuvant Chemotherapy? / 한국유방암학회지

PURPOSE: The frequency of immediate breast reconstruction (IBR) is increasing, and the types of reconstruction used are diverse. Adjuvant chemotherapy is a life-saving intervention in selected high-risk breast cancer patients. The aim of our study was to determine how IBR and type of reconstruction affect the timing of the initiation of chemotherapy. METHODS: We obtained data from female breast cancer patients treated by mastectomy with IBR (IBR group) and without IBR (mastectomy only group) who received adjuvant chemotherapy between January 1, 2008, and December 31, 2010. We retrospectively collected data including patient characteristics, disease characteristics, treatment details, and treatment outcomes from our institutional electronic patient database and medical treatment records. The reconstruction types were categorized as deep inferior epigastric perforator (DIEP) flap, latissimus dorsi (LD) flap and tissue expander/implant (TEI). RESULTS: In total, 595 patients were included in this study. Of these patients, 43 underwent mastectomy with IBR (IBR group) and 552 patients did not undergo reconstruction (mastectomy only group). There was significant difference in the timing of the initiation of chemotherapy between the two groups (p<0.0001). There were no cases of delays of more than 12 weeks. In the IBR group, 20 patients received TEI, 9 patients were treated by the insertion DIEP flaps, and 14 patients were treated by LD flaps. There were no significant differences in the timing of chemotherapy according to the type of reconstruction (p=0.095). CONCLUSION: IBR delays the initiation of chemotherapy, but does not lead to omission or significant clinical delay in chemotherapy. Further, the type of reconstruction does not affect the timing of chemotherapy.