Roentgentherapy alone in the cancer of the breast

Stage II, III and IV breast cancer patients were treated with ‘Roentgenrays’ only. In 310 patients radiation was directed systematically to the breast and draining lymph node regions. The crude 5year relapse-free survival rate was 32% and the 10-year rate was 15%. Treatment failure was primarily due to distant metastasis. Of the 54 patients free of relapse at 5 years, 12 developed distant metastasis and only 5 developed a local recurrence between 5 and 10 years.