The Treatment of Breast Cancer

Sir Hedley Atkins In an article in the London Times of November 26th 1973 their medical correspondent, Dr Tony Smith, discussed the many methods nowadays available for the treatment of common diseases. In this article he wrote: "Perhaps the most difficult of the common conditions is breast cancer, where the number of alternative treat­ ments is larger than most people suppose. After the surgeon has assessed the size and nature of the growth, how far it has spread, and the general health of the woman, he has to select the optimum treatment from a range that includes simple removal of lump, removal of the breast and removal of the breast together with the underlying muscle and the lymph glands in the shoulder region. Any of these operations may be combined with various forms of X-ray treatment; or the best chance may be given by treating the tumour with high-voltage X-rays without any operation at all. Each of these treatments may give a complete cure, and, in part, the choice depends on the surgeon's skill in assessing the type of cancer present and how far it is advanced. "The other element in the surgeon's choice, however, is his preference for one operation rather than another based on his experience and his interpretation of the results obtained by other surgical teams.