Results also showed that 2.7 per cent of the study's participants had breast cancer recur in the same breast, in the lymph nodes or spread to another part of the body.
Dr. Martin Yaffe, a professor and senior scientist at Sunnybrook Research Institute in Toronto, said the findings are "really good news." While he says this study is an important addition to the field, Speers notes that it's still unclear whether the radiation is working, and if it is, how much of an effect it's having.
Speers says it would be beneficial when discussing treatment plans to be able to tell patients about the level of risk they have of the cancer recurring and what, if any, benefit they would get from radiation treatment.For Waterloo resident Karin McNabb, who was diagnosed with stage 1 breast cancer last year, the study's results are "fantastic."