Overview
Postmastectomy radiotherapy (PMRT) is unequivocally beneficial in reducing the recurrences as well as improving survival in node positive breast cancer patients. PMRT for women with T1-T2 tumors and negative axillary nodes is not generally warranted because of the presumed low risk of recurrence in this population as a whole. However, in the setting of multiple adverse prognostic factors, the recurrence risk approaches and in some cases surpasses the risk of recurrence documented for patients with one to three positive lymph nodes. Numerous retrospective series have reported the outcome and patterns of failure for post-mastectomy patients treated without radiation. Many of these series have analyzed several high risk factors which were predictive of loco-regional recurrence wherein the role of adjuvant post-mastectomy radiation can be considered. Some authors have used combinations of prognostic factors, such as age, tumour size, grade, receptor status, Her2neu status and lympho-vascular space invasion to define subgroups with more specific risks of loco-regional recurrence than single factors alone. The current trial hypothesizes that "Post-mastectomy radiation in high risk, node negative early breast cancer patients decreases rates of loco-regional recurrence and improves disease free survival" and propose to address the question in randomized setting.