When my oncologist will consider breast cancer surgery for me?
If you diagnosed with non-metastatic breast cancer surgery is a first and preferred option according to all standard protocols.
The surgery’s goal is to remove the tumor in its entirety without harming the breast or its function.
At present, multiple innovative surgeries are offered to patients, which allow reduction of the health and cosmetic damages caused to the breast.
It is considered a success when a tumor is removed in full, however, not all surgeries are necessarily so. At times the tumor is branched and can only be partially removed.
In patients with genetic disposition there are cases where both breasts are removed in order to prevent a recurrence of the disease, for example patients who are BRCA gene carriers.
What kinds of breast cancer surgery can be right for me?
There are several types of surgeries that your oncologist may consider for you, and this of course depends on the size of the tumor, the Stage and its location, for example:
- Partial removal – Breast-conserving Surgery (Lumpectomy)
- Complete removal – Mastectomy, sometimes radical mesectomy will be done
- Prophylactic Mastectomy
- Breast-conserving Surgery (Lumpectomy)
Two main types of treatment may be offered to patients before and after breast cancer surgery
- Treatment prior to surgery is known as ‘Neoadjuvant’
- Post-surgery treatment, also known as ‘Adjuvant’
Good Luck!
