Hormone therapy is used to treat breast cancer when patients have estrogen-driven tumors, says Laurie Rudolph from Reston Hospital Center. Learn more in this video.
Breast Cancer Treatment
After a breast cancer diagnosis, there are many decisions to make. A multidisciplinary team of doctors and specialists can help get a treatment plan started and you can choose a treatment facility. In the past, breast cancer treatment involved a radical mastectomy, but today procedures are less invasive. Treatment will depend on the stage of breast cancer. It may include surgery, such as lumpectomy, radiation or chemotherapy to shrink and kill cancer cells. Learn more about breast cancer treatment options with expert advice from Sharecare.
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See All 5 AnswersThe five-year survival rate for people diagnosed with breast cancer is 89 percent, up from 75 percent in the mid 1970s. The five-year survival rate for people diagnosed with localized breast cancer is 98 percent.
A cancer diagnosis is scary, but today people are living with, through and beyond the disease. Survivorship starts at the moment cancer is diagnosed. You are considered a cancer survivor whether you are currently in treatment or completed your treatment long ago. If you are a cancer survivor, you are far from alone. The estimated number of cancer survivors in the United States is currently 14.5 million, with 2.8 million breast cancer survivors.
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See All 4 AnswersSurgical options for breast cancer have improved in a number of ways. There are now many approaches to breast conserving surgery designed to minimize the scar and improve the cosmetic appearance. There are also numerous reconstruction advances like total skin sparing (nipple sparing) mastectomy.
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Renee L. Quarterman, MD , answered on behalf of St. Mary Medical CenterThey're under surveillance. So women with breast cancer, after they've completed their treatment, they need to be followed for every 4 to 6 months for a while, and so they're going to see me and possibly some other specialists on a regular basis forever, really.
The information, opinions, and recommendations presented in this article have been compiled from a podcast and are for general information only.
Trinity Health is a Catholic health care organization that acts in accordance with the Catholic tradition and does not condone or support all practices covered in this site. In case of emergency call 911.This site is educational and not a substitute for professional medical advice, always seek the advice of a qualified healthcare provider.
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Aurora Health Care answeredSee All 3 AnswersBreast cancer treatment requires a team effort by doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals. Once your primary doctor has all the information about your breast cancer, you'll talk with your team about the treatments you'll need. Your treatment team may include:
- Anesthesiologist
- Cancer Nurse Navigator
- Genetic counselor
- Health psychologist
- Medical oncologist
- Pathologist
- Physical therapist/occupational therapist
- Plastic surgeon
- Radiation oncologist
- Radiologist
- Surgeon
- Nationally accredited breast care centers
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See All 5 AnswersThe treatment techniques available for breast cancer include surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, and targeted therapy. Most women with breast cancer have surgery to treat the main breast tumor. The primary purpose is to remove as much cancer as possible, determine whether the cancer has invaded local tissue, spread to the lymph nodes under the arm or relieve symptoms of advanced cancer. Because surgery may remove only a portion of the breast tissue and cancer can metastasize from the primary tumor and spread through the bloodstream. There are many different types of breast cancer surgery including the following:
- Breast-conserving surgery or partial mastectomy, segmental mastectomy, lumpectomy, quandrantectomy
- Total mastectomy without axillary lymph node dissection or sentinel lymph node biopsy
- Modified radical mastectomy with axillary lymph node dissection or with sentinel lymph node biopsy
- Radical mastectomy with chest wall excision with axillary lymph node dissection or sentinel lymph node biopsy
Many surgeries may need to be preceded (neoadjuvant therapy) or followed (adjuvant therapy) by radiation treatments, rounds of chemotherapy, hormonal suppression or targeted therapy. For instance, when chemotherapy is given after surgery to patients it is called adjuvant chemotherapy and it aims to lower the chance of recurrence at a later date. However, chemotherapy that is given before surgery is called neoadjuvant chemotherapy and it aims to treat, reduce or minimize the cancer. Radiation therapy for breast cancer consists of either “external beam radiation” with series of targeted exposures to high-energy rays or “brachytherapy” with placement of radioactive pellets strategically positioned to kill rapidly dividing cancer cells. Less often, radiation therapy may be used to debulk or shrink a tumor before surgery. Radiation to the breast is often needed after breast-conserving surgery. It is usually given after any chemotherapy.
Chemotherapy for breast cancer is the use of anti-cancer drugs via oral medications, intramuscular injection or intravenous infusions. Because they enter the bloodstream and reach distant parts of the body, chemotherapy is important treatment for cancers that have spread to distant organs or lymphatics. Hormone therapy for breast cancer targets hormone receptors, blocks the effects of estrogen and progesterone that promote cancer cell growth, and thereby reduces the risk of the cancer recurrence after surgery.
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Dr. Michael S. Porrazzo, MD , Radiation Oncology, answered on behalf of Spotsylvania Regional Medical CenterSee All 2 Answers
Michael Porrazzo, MD from Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center explains prone breast radiation treatment and how this development benefits many patients. Watch this video to learn more.
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In a breast lumpectomy, the operation focuses on the breast and possibly the lymph nodes under the arm in the setting of invasive cancer. During the operation, the surgeon usually removes some of the lymph nodes under the arm to check for cancer. This approach is termed a sentinel lymph node biopsy, in which the first few nodes that drain the breast are removed and checked under the microscope. A lumpectomy is also called a partial mastectomy or segmental mastectomy. These are all types of breast conservation surgery, in which the cancer is removed with a margin of normal tissue around it. An excisional biopsy is a surgery for a noncancerous lesion that involves removing an area of breast tissue for diagnostic purposes. This involves removing the lesion in question without a margin of healthy tissue around it in order to make a definitive diagnosis (usually done to rule out a cancer). -
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After the lumpectomy, the breast tissue will be analyzed fully by the pathologist. When a pathology report is available (usually about a week after surgery), the doctor will discuss the results and formulate a treatment plan. Usually, this involves a multidisciplinary treatment team, including a medical oncologist (who administers chemotherapy or an antiestrogen pill), as well as a radiation oncologist.
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See All 2 AnswersFollowing a mastectomy, patients need to take extra care of themselves until they're fully healed. They may also need physical therapy. Learn more from Laurie Rudolph from Reston Hospital Center in this video.
