Journal of the National Cancer Institute
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J. Natl. Cancer Inst. · Jul 2004
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Clinical TrialConventional adjuvant chemotherapy versus single-cycle, autograft-supported, high-dose, late-intensification chemotherapy in high-risk breast cancer patients: a randomized trial.
Breast cancer patients with four or more positive axillary lymph nodes who are treated with conventional adjuvant therapy have a poor prognosis. In uncontrolled studies, high-dose chemotherapy produced much better results than conventional therapy. We compared the benefits of a single cycle of high-dose chemotherapy and the benefits of conventional chemotherapy in patients with high-risk breast cancer in a prospective, unblinded, randomized trial. ⋯ Autograft-supported, high-dose therapy is not superior to conventional chemotherapy in patients with breast cancer who have multiple involved lymph nodes. This conclusion should be viewed in the context of improving the success of conventional chemotherapy.