A Study of Lobular Carcinoma of the Breast Based on the Third National Cancer Survey in the United States of America

Abstract

Cases in in situ and infiltrating lobular carcinoma of the breast reported in the Third National Cancer Survey were reviewed according to age, sex, race, and geographic distribution. The age-specific incidence rates indicate that there are two peak age periods of risk for invasive lobular carcinoma, the first occurring in ages 40-50 years and the second after age 65. The incidence rates for lobular carcinoma were compared to the incidence rates for intraductal and infiltrating ductal carcinoma reported from the Third National Cancer Survey and for total breast cancer from the Miyagi prefecture in Japan. These comparisons indicate that factors which influence the geographic variation in breast cancer play important roles in the etiology of infiltrating ductal carcinoma, but may have little effect upon the incidence of lobular carcinoma and intraductal carcinoma. The limitations of large histological epidemiological surveys are discussed.