10 Nov
14:00

PhD conferral Mw.drs. Dorien J.A. Lobbezoo

Supervisor: prof.dr. V.C.G. Tjan-Heijnen
Co-supervisors: dr. M.W. Dercksen, dr. A.C. Voogd

“Metastatic breast cancer; understanding prognosis and treatment patterns in real-life”

Keywords: breast cancer, metastases, prognosis, treatment

Although the prognosis of patients with disseminated breast cancer has improved in recent years, it remains the leading cause of death in women aged 40 to 60. This thesis shows that in daily practice, the prognosis of patients with disseminated breast cancer is influenced by various factors, such as hormone receptor and HER2 receptor status and time interval between the diagnosis of breast cancer and the onset of distant metastases.

In addition to examining the prognosis, the treatment given in daily practice was studied. Nearly 25% of patients with hormone receptor-positive disseminated breast cancer are initially treated with chemotherapy, in contrast to the current guideline in which hormone therapy is the first choice of treatment.