Individualization in Treatment of Cancer of the Breast

Abstract

In light of well-documented studies, it seems that surgeons have been dogmatic in their thoughts about treatment of breast cancer. When one considers the patient as a whole, combinations of radical surgery and radiation therapy are not always the best treatment. It is likely that many surgeons either have not kept abreast of medical and scientific progress or have not as yet modified their standard treatments to take account of new knowledge. A simplified system of therapy is described whose key is treatment of involved axillary nodes by either axillary dissection or radiation, but not by both methods.