Breast cancer is the most common malignancy in women in Latvia. One of nine women in the country is at risk of breast cancer. Both the treatment and the woman's future quality of life depend on how well the cancer diagnosis is performed.
As awareness of breast cancer and the biological data on cancer have increased, the ability to tailor a treatment plan to each patient has increased. The most advanced oncology guidelines for breast cancer treatment (NCCN guidelines) are also recommending tumor specific genetic testing.
What is the Oncotype DX Breast Recurrence Score® test and how can it help?
The Oncotype DX Breast Recurrence Score® is a diagnostic test that measures the activity of tumor genes in breast tissue. The test helps:
to determine predictions about the effectiveness of chemotherapy;
assess the risk of tumor recurrence.
The Oncotype DX Breast Recurrence Score® provides specific information about the type of tumor, helping your doctor better understand the biological data for that tumor. This allows you to create an individual treatment plan that is appropriate for your particular tumor.
It is important to have a test before starting any treatment. The test is not suitable if chemotherapy is started.
The test is performed using tumor tissue taken during surgery. The test can also be performed on tumor tissue obtained from a primary (or core) biopsy before surgery.
Is the Oncotype DX Breast Recurrence Score® test right for you?
This question will be answered by your doctor. The test may be appropriate if you:
have recently been diagnosed with an early stage invasive breast tumor;
there are ER + receptors on the surface of tumor cells;
there are HER2-negative tumor cells;
regional lymph nodes are not affected by tumor cells (N0), some (1–3) lymph nodes are affected by tumor cells (N1) or have lymph node micrometastases.
The Oncotype DX Breast Recurrence Score® has been validated in several clinical trials and has been used by more than 900,000 people worldwide. The study of TAILORx, which involved 10,273 patients from more than 1,000 treatment facilities, found that:
25% of patients with a low risk of cancer recurrence but a high clinical risk would have received treatment that would not have been required without the Oncotype DX Breast Recurrence Score®;
43% at high risk of cancer recurrence and low clinical risk would not have received the treatment required without the Oncotype DX Breast Recurrence Score®
/ Data and specific scientific studies are listed and published here /
How is Oncotype DX Breast Recurrence Score® tested and how do I apply?
Please contact our specialists to find out about the tumor sampling process, handing it over to the laboratory and receiving a test report, as well as about the testing costs and payment procedures. The simplified process diagram is shown in the figure below.
