Breast Cancer Treatment

The two main types of surgery are breast conserving surgery, which removes only a portion of the breast, and mastectomy, which removes all of the breast tissue (from one or both breasts). You also may need to have nearby lymph nodes surgically removed if the cancer has spread to them. Many women will undergo reconstructive surgery after their other procedures. Some cancer centers, like Lehigh Valley Topper Cancer Institute, offer Hidden ScarTM breast cancer surgery, where surgical incisions are made under the breast so the scars will be less visible.

This type of treatment uses high-energy rays or particles to destroy cancerous cells. It may be recommended after your surgical procedure or as your first therapy if your cancer has spread to other parts of your body. It will either be delivered from outside your body (external beam radiation therapy), or you will have radioactive pellets placed inside your breast (brachytherapy).

Medications that kill cancer cells are delivered into your bloodstream. Chemotherapy may be used before or after surgery, or if your cancer is in later stages, as your main treatment. 

This is a treatment option that only works for breast cancers that use hormones to grow. These medications stop your body from making certain hormones, stop the hormones from attaching to cancer cells or change the hormones so they don’t work properly. It’s often given for at least five years and may be started before or after surgery.

These medications target the parts of cancer cells that make them grow and spread. If testing reveals that your cancer might be positively impacted by these medications, you will receive them either alone or before or after other types of treatment.

This type of treatment boosts the immune system to recognize and fight cancer cells. At this time, immunotherapy is only effective against certain types of breast cancer. However, there are many clinical trials currently evaluating immunotherapy medications for other types of breast cancer.