Young Women With Breast Cancer Need Unique Treatment

By Dr. Brian McDonough, Medical Editor

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - We know that breast cancer is very aggressive in young women. Now there is information that breast cancer in young women is a biologically unique disease that requires customized management strategies - because breast cancer in young women is often aggressive and diagnosed at an advanced stage, meaning the prognosis for these patients is often poor.

Researchers have looked at a variety of genes in women with breast cancer to see if they correlated with age. The findings show that breast cancer arising at a young age seems to be associated with age-related biological processes that are unique to younger women. One of the key findings is that treatment needs to be specifically looked at for that group.