This study is designed to evaluate the efficacy of high dose melphalan and autologous bone marrow transplantation given as consolidation therapy to patients with inflammatory or metastatic carcinoma of the breast in complete remission. All patients entered will receive induction therapy with cyclophosphamide, adriamycin, methotrexate and 5-fluorouracil with hormonal synchronization utilizing tamoxifen and premarin as in a previous Medicine Branch protocol (MB-160C). Among patients with inflammatory carcinoma of the breast, pathologic complete responders will receive irradiation to the breast and regional lymph nodes; convertible partial responders and clinical complete responders with residual disease on biopsy will undergo surgical resection of bulk disease followed by irradiation of the chest wall and regional lymph nodes excluding the axilla. Both groups of responders will be randomized to receive either systemic consolidation therapy with high dose melphalan (180 mg/M2 total dose over 3 days) and autologous bone marrow transplantation followed by maintenance therapy or maintenance therapy alone. Complete responders in this noninflammatory group will not receive further therapy since, historically, they have done well following induction and local therapy, with maintenance therapy alone.
Patients with metastatic breast cancer will be assessed for response throughout induction therapy. Complete and convertable partial responders will receive consolidative therapy and be randomized to ABMT followed by 6 months of maintenance therapy vs. maintenance alone.
