Treatment of breast cancer - Considerations
Treatment options depend on the type of cancer, the stage, and whether it is hormone dependant. The treating physician will use a computer program that is kept up-to-date to predict what combination of treatment will give the best results. The following link is a commonly used program. http://www.adjuvantonline.com/
The doctor often involves the patient in the decision making because the treatment may be disfiguring or have significant side effects. The computer program will give the predicted improvement in life expectancy with each additional treatment.
For instance, a woman with stage 11A hormone related cancer that is non-aggressive gets a major improvement with lumpectomy, radiation and anti-hormone drugs. Adding chemotherapy gives a small additional improvement in life expectancy but chemotherapy has serious side effects, so some women will choose not to have chemotherapy: they may decide that the effect on their life of the chemotherapy is not worth the small increase in life expectancy.
Mastectomy may be slightly better than lumpectomy for some women, but is more disfiguring. Some women will want everything that can help, no matter the effect on quality of life. There is no correct answer for all women: make an informed decision taking your own circumstances into account. Use your doctor as a resource, not as an oracle.
