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Lookup NU author(s): Dr Mark Verrill
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
© The Author(s) 2026.Ipsilateral breast tumour recurrence (IBTR) may represent a true local recurrence (LR) from residual malignancy or a new primary (NP) tumour, with important implications for prognosis and treatment. However, no classification system exists to distinguish between these entities. This systematic review of studies evaluating classification methods for IBTR as LR or NP, identified 19 studies reporting 25 systems. Most were clinicopathological (21/25) and four were genomic. Tumour location (72%) and histological subtype (68%) were the most frequently applied criteria. IBTR rates ranged from 2 to 12%, with NP proportions between 13–82% and LR between 18–87%. Time to recurrence was shorter for LR than NP. Across studies, NP was consistently associated with superior survival outcomes. The methodological quality of included studies constrains the certainty of findings. Validation of clinicopathological and genomic criteria is needed before a classification system can be recommended, but pragmatic clinicopathological decisions remain essential in the interim.
Author(s): Blacker S, Boyle JM, Wang L, Withrow DR, Delon C, Dodwell D, Verrill M, Lemanska A, Pinder SE, Frampton AE, Horgan K, Cromwell DA
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: npj Breast Cancer
Year: 2026
Volume: 12
Issue: 1
Print publication date: 30/04/2026
Online publication date: 13/02/2026
Acceptance date: 23/10/2025
Date deposited: 18/05/2026
ISSN (electronic): 2374-4677
Publisher: Nature Research
URL: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41523-025-00850-8
DOI: 10.1038/s41523-025-00850-8
Data Access Statement: All data generated or analysed during this study are included in this published article and its supplementary tables.
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