Interval for surgical treatment after neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with breast cancer at the Hospital de Clínicas Complex of the Federal University of Paraná from 2020 to 2022

Abstract

Introduction: One of the possible critical factors for the outcome of breast cancer treatment is the time between diagnosis and the start of neoadjuvant therapy, and the interval until surgical treatment. Prolonged time between diagnosis and the institution of treatment may be associated with a worse prognosis, with an impact on overall survival and
progression-free survival. Objective: To analyze the time interval between the end of neoadjuvant therapy and surgical
treatment in patients at the Hospital de Clínicas Complex of the Federal University of Paraná (CHC-UFPR) between 2020
and 2022. Methods: This is a retrospective, observational, and descriptive study. All female patients who were diagnosed
with breast cancer and treated at CHC-UFPR and who underwent neoadjuvant therapy followed by surgical treatment
were included in the study. Results: The sample consisted of 44 patients. The average time between the end of neoadjuvant therapy and surgical treatment was 47.86 days. The average time to start treatment (time from diagnosis to start of
neoadjuvant therapy) was 36.20 days. When comparing the time to start neoadjuvant therapy between the years, there
was a significant difference between 2020 and 2022 (p=0.009). Surgical treatment was performed after the end of neoadjuvant treatment within eight weeks in 33 (75%) patients and more than eight weeks in 11 (25%). Conclusion: The present
study demonstrated that 75% of patients diagnosed with breast cancer between 2020 and 2022 at the CHC-UFPR underwent surgical treatment within eight weeks of the end of neoadjuvant therapy