BREAST cancer patients over the age of 65 can skip radiotherapy without dramatically harming their chances of survival, according to new research.

A study conducted by Edinburgh University found radiotherapy only made a small difference to older women who were in the early stages of the disease.

The researchers suggest carefully selected patients who have surgery and hormone treatment could go without exposure to radiation and avoid side-effects such as fatigue and heart damage.

At the moment it is standard for older women with early hormone-sensitive breast cancer to receive radiotherapy after surgery.

The study, which has been detailed in the medical journal Lancet Oncology, involved 1,326 patients with this form of the disease from around the world. Half were given radiation as well as as hormone treatment and half were given hormone treatment alone.

After five years, roughly 96 per cent of both groups had survived, and most deaths were not caused by breast cancer. Around one per cent of those given radiation saw the cancer return to the treated breast, while four per cent of those who did not receive radiotherapy experienced a similar recurrence.

Professor Ian Kunkler, from Edinburgh University's Cancer Research Centre, said: "While radiotherapy will remain the standard of care for most women after breast-conserving surgery, the absolute reduction in risk of recurrence from radiotherapy in low risk older women receiving hormone treatment is very modest. This makes omission of radiotherapy an option for selected older patients."

Nicolas White, head of Scotland at Breast Cancer Care, said: "We know from speaking to women across Scotland at our support services that the prospect of radiotherapy can be so daunting some opt to have a mastectomy to avoid it, so this research will be hugely welcomed by many patients.

"Many older women have a lot of difficulties attending radiotherapy sessions and the side effects, such as pain, fatigue and lymphoedema, can really impact on quality of life.

"However, this study is on a group of patients with a particular kind of breast cancer. Findings also show rates of local recurrence were nearly 3 per cent higher in women who didn't have radiotherapy treatment."