Breast cancer surgery

Breast Cancer Surgery can be a life saver! No matter how tensed you are, you have to gather up all those guts and face this decision headstrong. Getting surgery is the first obstacle in treatment. The word “surgery” manages to scare daylights out of women. To help you come to terms with your fear of surgery here is an account of the procedures involved and what the procedures consist of. Surgery involves removal of the tumor which hasn’t yet spread to other parts. During this process a bit of the surrounding tissue too is taken out just incase it might have been affected.

Many a time the surgeon takes out the affected lymph nodes from the area to examine it for damaged cells. This gives him an additional edge in deciding the nature of your treatment. The techniques of surgery differ according to the characteristics of the tumor. Hence the surgeon will lay down all the options in front of you that he has towards your surgery. Generally you come across the following types of options:

Lumpectomy is also known as breast conserving therapy. The name itself confirms its aim to keep the breast in shape as much as possible after removal of the affected part. Cancer spotted in its 1st or 2nd stage i.e. less than 5 cms in diameter is treated to this surgery. Women who do not qualify for this surgery are ones who’ve had radiation treatment before or have two or more tumors to far apart to remove in one incision. A second incision may be undertaken to get rid of the lymph nodes. After this surgery, follows the radiation therapy. Almost half the victims of the disease undergo this surgery. Partial or Segmental Mastectomy is where more than just the affected tissue is removed. Some what of the lymph nodes too may be dealt with. But a half damaged breast is much more difficult to repair than a completely removed one as such implants haven’t been invented yet.

Total Mastectomy goes a step further by removing the affected breast completely. Just the lymph nodes are not touched at all.

Modified Radical Mastectomy is removal of all the breast’s tissues including the lymph nodes as well as the nipple. This surgery remakes the breast, meaning it takes tissues from parts of the body to reform it. It is generally borrowed from the lower abs.

It may be possible that your blood is tested before the surgery. This is in-case a blood transfusion is in line. Earlier women were under the impression that the more tissues removed from her breast the more she evades death from cancer. This actually led women with small breasts to loose their breasts completely. But thanks to the above revised methods of surgery it is now less damaging and even lesser disfigurement.

Also read our article about Breast Cancer Treatment