The breast cancer sufferers who have already gone into remission; however, they get their cancer return are at up to 50% the risk of dying from the disease if the disease return is spotted early said a group of international researchers. The group who carried out the new study has warned that respective doctors must keep on monitoring breast cancer patients strongly. It will help them to identify returning ’secondary’ tumours just before symptoms appear. It is very necessary because if it detected early enough a lot of patients have a 27% to 47% better chance of survival than victims whose cancer is identified later. Their research study has been published in the journal Annals of Oncology.

The research team said that it was the very broad assessment of how early detection can prevent deaths from secondary breast cancer. Leader of the group from the University of Sydney’s School of Public Health Nehmat Houssami said “Intuitively, it makes sense to consider that early detection of second breast cancers will improve prognosis, since breast cancer survivors have a long-term risk of developing further disease or relapse in either breast.”  Houssami said there had been a “paucity of evidence” about the advantages of early identification. The study said, “Recommendations on follow-up after treatment of early breast cancer should consider our findings, which suggest that early detection of second breast cancer events improves prognosis in this ever-increasing group of women”. The group observed 1,044 sufferers between 1980 and 2005. The sufferer had attended a clinic in Florence, Italy that period.