ACTA FAC. MED. NAISS. 2005; 22 (2):85-89

   Professional article

   ROLE OF PROGNOSTIC FACTORS IN THE MANAGEMENT OF BREAST CANCER

Aleksandar Karanikolić¹, Vesna Karanikolić², Dragan Milić¹, Dragana Buđevac¹, Lidija Đorđević¹

¹Surgical Clinic, Clinical Center Niš
²Clinic for Dermatology, Clinical Center Niš  
       

    SUMMARY
    Prognostic factors should be used to provide an estimate of risk of recurrence in women with early-stage breast cancer. A useful prognostic factor has the following characteristics: it has significant and independent predictive value that has been validated by clinical testing, its determination must be feasible, reproducible, and widely available, with quality control and it must be readily interpretable by the clinician and have therapeutic implications. Tumor diameter, lymph node status and histological grade are the most important prognostic factors in breast cancer. Besides these morphologic parameters numerous biological markers have been determined, but their importance as prognostic factors is still a matter of debate. The prognostic and therapeutic implications of mammaglobin (MGB1) gene, high intratumoral microvessel density (MVD) and CK19-positive cells positivity in the peripheral blood of breast cancer patients should be the matter of further investigation. Combination of the single parameters to give complex indexes can yield more information about the biological behavior of each neoplasm. The use of prognostic indexes, especially when compiled using traditional parameters, is a useful aid to the clinician, since they can provide a reliable indication of how individual tumors will evolve.
 

    Key words: breast cancer, prognostic factors, prognostic index