Ovarian ablation using goserelin improves survival of premenopausal patients with stage II/III hormone receptor-positive breast cancer without chemotherapy-induced amenorrhea

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess the value of ovarian ablation using goserelin in premenopausal patients with stage II/III hormone receptor-positive breast cancer without chemotherapy-induced amenorrhea (CIA). Materials and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the data of breast patients treated between October 1999 and November 2007 without CIA. The Kaplan-Meier method was used for calculation of the survival rate. Log rank method and Cox regression analysis were used for univariate and multivariate prognostic analysis. Results: The median follow-up period was 61 months. Initially, 353 patients remained without CIA after chemotherapy and 98 among those who received goserelin and tamoxifen (TAM). In univariate analysis, goserelin improved locoregional recurrence-free survival (LRFS) (98.9% vs. 94.1%, p=0.041), distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS) (85.4% vs. 71.9%, p=0.006), disease-free survival (DFS) (85.4% vs. 71.6%, p=0.005), and overall survival (OS) (93.5% vs. 83.5%, p=0.010). In multivariate analysis, goserelin treatment was an independent factor influencing DMFS (hazard ratio [HR], 1.603; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.228 to 2.092; p=0.001), DFS (HR, 1.606; 95% CI, 1.231 to 2.096; p=0.001), and OS (HR, 3.311; 95% CI, 1.416 to 7.742; p=0.006). In addition, treatment with goserelin resulted in significantly improved LRFS (p=0.039), DMFS (p=0.043), DFS (p=0.036), and OS (p=0.010) in patients aged < 40 years. In patients aged ≥ 40 years, goserelin only improved DMFS (p=0.028) and DFS (p=0.027). Conclusion Ovarian ablation with goserelin plus TAM resulted in significantly improved therapeutic efficacy in premenopausal patients with stage II/III hormone receptor-positive breast cancer without CIA.