Health and Quality of Life Outcomes BioMed Central Review Open Access Outcomes and quality of life following breast cancer treatment in older women: When, why, how much, and what do women want? Jeanne Mandelblatt*, Melissa Figueiredo and Jennifer Cullen Address: Department of Oncology and Lombardi Cancer Center, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, USA Email: Jeanne Mandelblatt* - mandelbj@; Melissa Figueiredo - mif2@; Jennifer Cullen - jc49@ * Corresponding author Published: 17 September 2003 Health and Quality of Life Outcomes 2003, 1:45 This article is available from: Received: 30 July 2003 Accepted: 17 September 2003 © 2003 Mandelblatt et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article:. | BioMed Central Health and Quality of Life Outcomes Review Open Access Outcomes and quality of life following breast cancer treatment in older women When why how much and what do women want Jeanne Mandelblatt Melissa Figueiredo and Jennifer Cullen Address Department of Oncology and Lombardi Cancer Center Georgetown University Washington DC USA Email Jeanne Mandelblatt - mandelbj@ Melissa Figueiredo - mif2@ Jennifer Cullen - jc49@ Corresponding author Published 17 September 2003 Received 30 July 2003 Accepted 17 September 2003 Health and Quality of Life Outcomes 2003 1 45 This article is available from http content 1 1 45 2003 Mandelblatt et al licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article verbatim copying and redistribution of this article are permitted in all media for any purpose provided this notice is preserved along with the article s original URL. Abstract Background There are few comprehensive reviews of breast cancer outcomes in older women. We synthesize data to describe key findings and gaps in knowledge about the outcomes of breast cancer in this population. Methods We reviewed research published between 1995 and June 2003 on breast cancer quality of life and outcomes among women aged 65 and older treated for breast cancer. Outcomes included communication satisfaction and multiple quality of life domains. Results Few randomized trials or cohort studies that measured quality of life after treatment focused exclusively on older women. Studies from older women generally noted that with the exception of axillary dissection type of surgical treatment generally had no effect on long-term outcomes. In contrast the processes of care such as choosing therapy good patient-physician communication receiving treatment concordant with preferences about body image and low perceptions of bias were associated with better quality of life and satisfaction. Conclusions With the exception of axillary .
