Inflammatory breast cancer in Tunisia: reassessment of incidence and clinicopathological features

Inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) is a clinical diagnosis characterized by a peculiar geographic distribution in incidence, being particularly common in Tunisia and the region of North Africa. The peculiar aspects of the disease in this region may provide some insights on the biological characteristics of the disease. We updated and revised the data from our single-institution experience using the more stringent diagnostic criteria of the International Union Against Cancer (UICC) based on the tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) classification. The new analysis included 419 newly diagnosed cases of IBC evaluated between 1975 and 1996 that were subdivided into three groups: group A (118 cases classified as T4d in 1990-1996); group B (175 cases reported as Pev 2 or 3 in 1975-81 and restaged as T4d); and group C (126 cases classified Pev 2 or 3 in 1975-81 and restaged as T4b). The frequency of IBC cases classified as T4d in the various series was 5.7% for group A (118/2,073) and 13.3% for group B (175/1,317), while T4b represented 9% for group C (126/1,317). The analysis demonstrated worse 5-year overall survival rates for groups A and B (8.5% and 11.3%, respectively) compared to group C (25.6%). Interestingly, using a more uniform classification criteria, the incidence of IBC was 5% to 7% compared to previous historical reports of up to 50% of newly diagnosed cases of breast cancer in Tunisia.