New study questions use of neoadjuvant chemotherapy in breast cancer treatment

Published this month in the British Medical Journal was an interesting paper on the application of neoadjuvant chemotherapy in the treatment of breast cancer. This type of chemotherapy refers to medicines that are used prior to surgery to reduce the size of the tumour.

Lead author of the paper, Mr Jayant S Vaidya, professor of surgery and oncology and consultant breast cancer surgeon at University College London and the Royal Free Hospital, argued that in some cases we must reconsider current the use of neoadjuvant chemotherapy as there is evidence to suggest that there is a higher rate of local recurrence and no evidence of survival benefit.