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Abstract

The influence of young age at diagnosis on prognosis of patients with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) remains unclear. We examined overall survival (OS) within a single-institution prospective study of patients with de novo or recurrent MBC. Kaplan-Meier curves assessed OS by age (≤35 or ≤40 years as the youngest category) and inferred metastatic tumor subtype. Multivariable Cox regression models estimated hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% CIs for OS by age adjusting for clinical factors. Of 4189 women <75 years, 571 were ≤40 years at MBC diagnosis, of whom 260 were ≤35 years. Over half (52%) died during follow-up (median = 5.3 years, IQR = 2.1–9.8 years). Compared to patients 45–55 years, those ≤35 years at diagnosis experienced worse OS (HR = 1.22, 95%CI 1.00–1.48, p = 0.05). This association was driven by HER2-negative/luminal B-like and hormone receptor-positive/HER2-positive tumors. These findings highlight the need to develop more effective therapies for young patients with this metastatic subtype.

Details

1009240
Title
The association between young age at metastatic breast cancer diagnosis and overall survival in the EMBRACE study
Author
Brantley, Kristen D. 1 ; Kirkner, Gregory J. 2 ; Hughes, Melissa E. 3 ; Varella, Leticia 4 ; Suggs, Georgia 5 ; Cunningham, Olivia M. 2 ; Ravikumar, Sanjana 2 ; Snow, Craig 2 ; Tolaney, Sara M. 4 ; Sammons, Sarah 4 ; Partridge, Ann H. 4 ; Lin, Nancy U. 4 

 Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA (ROR: https://ror.org/02jzgtq86) (GRID: grid.65499.37) (ISNI: 0000 0001 2106 9910); Department of Medicine, Harvard School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA (ROR: https://ror.org/03vek6s52) (GRID: grid.38142.3c) (ISNI: 000000041936754X) 
 Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA (ROR: https://ror.org/02jzgtq86) (GRID: grid.65499.37) (ISNI: 0000 0001 2106 9910); Breast Oncology Program, Dana-Farber Brigham Cancer Center, Boston, MA, USA (ROR: https://ror.org/05rgrbr06) (GRID: grid.417747.6) (ISNI: 0000 0004 0460 3896) 
 Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA (ROR: https://ror.org/02jzgtq86) (GRID: grid.65499.37) (ISNI: 0000 0001 2106 9910); Breast Oncology Program, Dana-Farber Brigham Cancer Center, Boston, MA, USA (ROR: https://ror.org/05rgrbr06) (GRID: grid.417747.6) (ISNI: 0000 0004 0460 3896); Yale Cancer Center, New Haven, CT, USA (ROR: https://ror.org/03j7sze86) (GRID: grid.433818.5) (ISNI: 0000 0004 0455 8431) 
 Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA (ROR: https://ror.org/02jzgtq86) (GRID: grid.65499.37) (ISNI: 0000 0001 2106 9910); Department of Medicine, Harvard School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA (ROR: https://ror.org/03vek6s52) (GRID: grid.38142.3c) (ISNI: 000000041936754X); Breast Oncology Program, Dana-Farber Brigham Cancer Center, Boston, MA, USA (ROR: https://ror.org/05rgrbr06) (GRID: grid.417747.6) (ISNI: 0000 0004 0460 3896) 
 Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA (ROR: https://ror.org/02jzgtq86) (GRID: grid.65499.37) (ISNI: 0000 0001 2106 9910) 
Publication title
Volume
11
Issue
1
Pages
96
Number of pages
9
Publication year
2025
Publication date
2025
Section
Article
Publisher
Nature Publishing Group
Place of publication
London
Country of publication
United States
e-ISSN
23744677
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
Document type
Journal Article
Publication history
 
 
Online publication date
2025-08-29
Milestone dates
2025-08-20 (Registration); 2025-05-30 (Received); 2025-08-20 (Accepted)
Publication history
 
 
   First posting date
29 Aug 2025
ProQuest document ID
3244979863
Document URL
https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/association-between-young-age-at-metastatic/docview/3244979863/se-2?accountid=208611
Copyright
© The Author(s) 2025. This work is published under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the "License"). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.
Last updated
2025-08-30
Database
ProQuest One Academic