Does Anesthesia Technique Impact on the Long-term Outcome 5 and 10 Years After the First Intervention in Primary Breast Cancer Surgery? A Follow-up Analysis.

It has been assumed that the type of general anesthesia impacts the release of circulating tumor cells (CTC) in the perioperative setting of breast cancer surgery. Those CTC are suspected to promote metastasis formation. We have already investigated the direct effect of sevoflurane vs. propofol on CTC in a randomized controlled trial. There was no significant difference in the number of CTC between the two treatment groups up to 72 hours after anesthesia. CTC are a surrogate marker for cancer recurrence. Therefore, the role of the choice of the general anesthetic for breast cancer surgery should be clarified focusing on the long-term clinical outcome. In this follow-up study, we aim at defining the cancer recurrence and overall survival in patients of the sevoflurane and propofol group of the primary clinical trial.