Statement: Patients with breast implants are always excluded from the primary trial.
Primary_evidence: DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:   Histologically or cytologically confirmed invasive adenocarcinoma of the breast, meeting 1 of the following high-risk criteria:   T3 or T4 primary tumor   4 or more involved axillary lymph nodes (N2 nodal stage)   Completed surgical excision   No immediate reconstruction with autologous flap reconstruction   Patients having tissue expanders or implants placed prior to radiation may be enrolled at the physician's discretion   No residual breast cancer   Microscopically positive margins are allowed if a re-excision is not felt to be clinically justified   Candidate for radiotherapy   Must not require bilateral radiotherapy   No metastatic (stage IV) breast cancer by AJCC staging criteria   Hormone receptor status not specified   No CNS disorders   PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:   Life expectancy  6 months   Karnofsky performance status 70-100%   Menopausal status not specified   Ambulatory   Hemoglobin > 9 g/dL   Platelet count > 100,000/mm³   ANC > 1,500/mm³   Serum AST, ALT, and alkaline phosphatase  2 times upper limit of normal (ULN)   Total bilirubin normal   Creatinine clearance > 50 mL/min   Negative pregnancy test   Not pregnant or nursing   Fertile patients must use effective contraception during study and for 30 days after the last study drug administration   No serious, uncontrolled, concurrent infection(s)   No diabetes with current or history of delayed wound healing or skin ulcers   No autoimmune connective tissue disorder   No prior unanticipated severe reaction to fluoropyrimidine therapy, known sensitivity to 5-fluorouracil, or known dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase (DPD) deficiency   No other carcinomas within the last five years except cured non-melanoma skin cancer and in-situ cervical cancer   No clinically significant cardiac disease (e.g., congestive heart failure, symptomatic coronary artery disease, or cardiac arrhythmias not well controlled with medication) or myocardial infarction within the last 12 months   No other serious uncontrolled medical conditions that the investigator feels might compromise study participation, including any of the following:   Uncontrolled seizures   Psychiatric disability judged by the investigator to be clinically significant   Physically intact upper gastrointestinal tract   No malabsorption syndrome   No uncompensated coagulopathy   No patients whose breast size or body contour puts them at increased risk for skin desquamation from standard radiotherapy   Able to read and speak English   PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:   Fully recovered from surgery and chemotherapy with completely healed surgical wounds   At least 4 weeks since completion of prior chemotherapy regimen, excluding trastuzumab (Herceptin®)   Concurrent trastuzumab allowed at the physician's discretion   More than 4 weeks since prior participation in any investigational drug study   At least 4 weeks since prior and no concurrent sorivudine or brivudine   More than 2 weeks since prior major surgery   No prior capecitabine   No prior radiotherapy to the chest or ipsilateral lymphatics   No concurrent hormonal therapy during course of chemotherapy or radiation therapy   No concurrent allopurinol or cimetidine   Concurrent coumadin is allowed