Treatment

BREAST CANCER TREATMENTS

Standard treatment for breast cancer usually includes one of more of these options:

Surgery

Almost all women diagnosed with breast cancer will undergo some form of surgery to remove the cancer. The various surgical treatment options—such as nipple-sparing mastectomy, oncoplastic surgery and lumpectomy—are described in this section.

Radiation Therapy

Radiation therapy is used to destroy cancer cells in the breast that may remain after surgery. In treating breast cancer, radiation is used routinely after lumpectomy and selectively after mastectomy, in order to help reduce the chances that the cancer will recur.

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy is a type of cancer treatment that uses drugs to to slow or stop the growth of cancer cells. Chemotherapy, sometimes simply called “chemo,” may be used before surgery, after surgery or both. It is rarely, if ever, used as the only treatment for breast cancer.

Hormone Therapy

Certain hormones can promote the growth of some breast cancers. Hormone therapy can be used to slow or stop the growth of cancer cells that are sensitive to such hormones as estrogen.