Breast Cancer Treatments
At one point in time not too far in the distant past, a diagnosis of breast cancer usually meant either radical, invasive treatment such as a complete mastectomy or death. Other options were almost unheard of, and trauma was almost certain to be the result. Nowadays, though, with more emphasis being placed on women’s health issues and the advancement of medicinal treatments for a variety of conditions, there are more options than ever for treating breast cancer.
Surgery was and still is a major treatment option for breast cancer, but today it is much more likely to be less radical than it would have been a few decades ago. Earlier, surgery almost always involved complete radical mastectomy, or removal of the entire breast. Now, however, it is becoming increasingly common to save healthy breast tissue, usually via lumpectomy. A lumpectomy is surgery that removes the cancer tissue (lump) and some of the surrounding tissue, but does not remove the entire breast. In days past, doctors rarely consulted the patient with any options, mainly because there weren’t many. Cancer was generally detected only once it had become relatively large, and popular medical opinion was to get rid of all tissue to reduce the chances of another bout of cancer. Now, though, in part due to earlier diagnoses, your doctor will likely explain your options and offer two or more choices.
Another treatment option is radiation treatment. With radiation, the doctor uses radioactive beams and focuses them on the cancerous area. Radiation beams kill cells, including the healthy ones that are also in the area that is being treated. Radiation is frequently used in conjunction with surgery to help prevent recurrence. Although we have all heard horror stories about the effect of radiation therapy, the process itself really causes no pain. There may be some side effects, such as fatigue, but it is the rare individual who loses all their hair. Whether you choose lumpectomy or mastectomy, you should be prepared to have radiation treatment after surgery, as it is considered very effective.
Hormonal therapy is designed to treat cancer systemically by inhibiting the production of estrogens, which generally increases the ability of cancer cells to form and grow. Tamoxifen, Arimidex, and Aromasin are the most commonly prescribed hormonal treatment medications.
Chemotherapy is another treatment option; many people confuse radiation and chemotherapy, but chemotherapy differs in that it basically uses medications to treat the cancer. Chemotherapy is often employed both before and after surgery to reduce the size of the tumour before operating and to kill cancer cells that may still exist after surgery. Cancer cells are usually changing and dividing more rapidly than healthy normal cells, and chemotherapy drugs are efficient at killing cells while they are in the process of dividing. That is what makes chemotherapy quite effective.
Often, there are times that breast cancer treatment will include more than one treatment option, particularly with partial mastectomy, or lumpectomy. The other treatments mentioned tend to enhance the effectiveness of the surgery and help prevent the return of cancer.
