Module #4: All about Surgery

Module #4: All about Surgery >> Introduction to Breast Cancer

The distance between the edge of the cancer and the cut edge of the specimen

The ratio of the size of the cancer and the size of what was removed

The likelihood that the cancer will come back

The circumference of a cancer

Partial mastectomy with subsequent radiation therapy

Conventional mastectomy

Skin sparing mastectomy with immediate reconstruction

They are all the same

Multicentric Cancer

Prior radiation therapy to the chest

The cancer is not-palpable (i.e., you can’t feel it)

Inflammatory breast cancer

The nipple will keep erectile function

The nipple will be insensate

The nipple will not respond to cold or sexual stimulus

Cancer may recur in the nipple

After bilateral mastectomy, one does not need to have routine mammograms

There is a clear survival benefit for patients who choose to undergo contralateral prophylactic mastectomy

The operative risks associated with contralateral prophylactic mastectomy are higher than if surgery was done only on one side

Contralateral prophylactic mastectomy is associated with a 95% risk reduction of developing contralateral breast cancer

A BRCA gene mutation

Obesity

A history of smoking

A prior history of radiation therapy to the chest

Having neoadjuvant chemotherapy

Having a mastectomy

Having 3 positive lymph nodes

Having a tumor greater than 2 cm

She is node positive and should undergo an axillary dissection

She is node positive, but does not need to undergo an axillary dissection because the tumor in her breast is small

She is node positive, but does not need to undergo an axillary dissection because the deposit in her lymph node is small

She is node negative, and therefore does not need an axillary dissection

Numbness of the upper-inner aspect of the arm

Increased risk of cancer in other lymph nodes

Decreased range of motion of the shoulder

Swelling of the hand

Wear a medicalert bracelet

Wear a sleeve when flying overseas

Lift weights

Avoid shaving or portals of infection

Module #4: All about Surgery >> Introduction to Breast Cancer