Research Needed To Learn Which DCIS Patients May Be Candidates For Less Invasive Therapy

Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), the most common non-invasive lesion of the breast, presents unique challenges for patients and providers largely because the natural course of the untreated disease is not well understood. Because most women diagnosed with DCIS are treated, it is difficult to determine the comparative benefits of different treatment strategies versus active surveillance, meaning systematic followup. An independent panel convened by the NIH urged the scientific community to identify appropriate biomarkers and other prognostic factors to better predict the risk of developing breast cancer.

"Instead of treating all women diagnosed with DCIS, we need to determine which individuals are likely to develop invasive breast cancer and which will not," said Dr. Carmen Allegra, panel chair and Chief of Hematology and Oncology at the University of Florida. "If we could accurately predict this, we might save some women from undergoing unnecessary invasive treatments while achieving the same positive outcomes."