Surgery As Treatment For Breast Cancer
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There are many treatment choices for women
who are diagnosed with breast cancer. Surgery, radiation
therapy, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, and biological
therapy are the primary choices for treatment. Many women
will have more than one treatment. Your choice of treatment
will largely depend on which stage your cancer is in. You
doctor will be able to explain treatments to you, and the
side effects and expected results.
Questions to ask your doctor may start with,
how will the treatment affect my normal activities? You
will want to know how your looks will be affected during and
after treatment and questions on possible loss of hair.
Cancer treatments are split into two
therapies. Local therapy and systemic therapy are used for
different stages of breast cancer. |
Local therapy is used when the cancer has not
spread to other areas of the body. Surgery and radiation are
local therapy treatments. Systemic therapy is chemotherapy,
hormone therapy, and biological therapy. They enter the
bloodstream and destroy cancer cells throughout the body. Some
women will have this therapy before surgery to shrink the tumor
before the operation, or will have it as a follow-up of the
surgery. This may keep the cancer from spreading to other parts
of the body.
Side effects are common but may not be the same for
each person. Treatments will affect your each body differently and
can change from treatment to treatment. Before you start treatment,
your doctor will explain the treatment and the possible side effects.
Surgery is the most common treatment used for breast
cancer. Even surgeries are divided into types beginning with
lumpectomies, and partial mastectomy. A biopsy can be a lumpectomy if
the whole tumor is removed for biopsy purposes. A doctor will also
remove lymph nodes from under the arm to see if cancer cells have
entered the lymphatic system. A full mastectomy is when the entire
breast is removed as well as the lymph nodes under the arm. This
surgery may also involve removing some of the lining over chest
muscles where the tumor was found.
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If cancer is found in the removed lymph
nodes, the doctor will follow surgery with radiation or
chemotherapy to fight the cancer in other parts of the
body. Many women choose to have breast reconstruction done
at the time of their mastectomy. It can be done later if
the woman chooses. A plastic surgeon may be in the
operating room and take over after the doctor has performed
the first surgery. This is often done to spare the woman
the trauma of a second surgery.
Surgery always carries a risk for infection
and will always mean pain. Discuss pain relief with your
doctor before the surgery and remember that pain medication
can be adjusted after surgery to give you the relief you
need. Surgery may cause numbness or tingling in the chest,
arms, shoulder, and underarms. This will normally go away
within a few months. In some cases, the numbness does not
go away. |
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