Rising Triple negative breast cancer cases in Odisha, India:An ominous sign !

Background: Triple negative breast cancers (TNBCs) are a group of tumors that by definition lack estrogen and progesterone receptors and amplification of the HER-2 gene. The majority of the tumors classified as TNBCs are highly malignant, patients are usually young and only a subgroup of patients responds to conventional chemotherapy with a favorable prognosis. Various studies have been reported in western literature on TNBCs, all highlighting the poor prognosis of this subtype. However, extensive data from India is lacking. Aim: The aim of this study was to analyze the epidemiological and clinical profile of TNBCs at our institute. Materials and Methods: This was the prospective study carried out in Tertiary Cancer Care Center in Odisha,India. 100 cases of breast carcinoma were studied histopathologically and their ER,PR ,HER-2/NEU status was studied after staining at HMCH,Bhubaneswar. Results: Of  100 cases studied,25 cases were triple negative,which is a significantly high number.though most of the cases which were triple negative were also less than 40 years and having high grade tumor. Conclusions: TNBCs are highly aggressive subtype, with high grade with limited treatment options and very poor prognosis. Incidence is more in our country than the western literature. Even in our country also the incidence is varies in different region. TNBCs are significantly associated with young aged patients. There was a lack of association between tumor size and lymph node positivity. Keywords: Breast cancer, Triple negative, Invasive ductal carcinoma.