Care pathways for patients with breast cancer

摘要

Although the incidence of breast cancer is increasing in the UK, mortality is decreasing thanks to significant achievements in the organisation and delivery of breast cancer care, with multidisciplinary working at its centre.The incidence of breast cancer worldwide is more than a million cases per year, and is increasing. It is currently the most common female cancer in the UK, with an annual incidence of 45 000 cases. Age is the strongest independent risk factor for developing breast cancer, with 75 per cent of cases occurring in women aged over 50 years. An increasing proportion (30-40 per cent) of cancers is now diagnosed by screening. Although the incidence has increased in the UK, the mortality rates have fallen steadily over the past 20 years. Overall survival is now 80-85 per cent at five years and 50-65 per cent at 20 years after diagnosis. However, it remains the second deadliest cancer (after lung cancer) in women, with nearly 12000 women in the UK succumbing to the disease annually.