If you've been diagnosed with breast cancer, you may have a choice between a lumpectomy and a mastectomy. You should consider the extent of your cancer, how aggressively you want to treat it and the possibility of recurrence in making your decision.
Lumpectomy
A lumpectomy is surgery that removes the tumor from within the breast. It preserves most of the breast.
Mastectomy
In a mastectomy, the entire breast is removed, not just the tumor. You may decide to use a prosthetic breast after you have healed from the surgery.
After a Lumpectomy
Women who have lumpectomies usually have radiation treatment as a followup to make sure that the cancer cells have been killed. The course of radiation treatments takes four to six weeks.
After a Mastectomy
Radiation treatment isn't usually needed after a mastectomy unless the tumor was particularly large or if it was close to the chest wall. You may experience numbness because nerves were cut or swelling because of the disruption of the lymph system.
Recurrence of Cancer
A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine examined the recurrence of breast cancer after lumpectomy and radiation. Researchers led by Harry Bartelink, M.D., Ph.D., Jean-Claude Horiot, M.D., Ph.D., and Philip Poortmans, M.D., Ph.D., found that of the women studied, 7.3 percent (182 out of 2,657) experienced a recurrence of cancer within five years.
Other Considerations
According to the Breast Cancer Foundation, these treatments are equally effective, if there is a single tumor that measures less than 4 cm. If that is your situation, consider personal factors. Would you feel better as a woman if you kept your affected breast? Would you worry about cancer coming back if you followed the more conservative treatment? Discuss these questions with your doctor.
Tags: Breast Cancer
