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Breast Cancer Treatment
There are two major goals of breast cancer treatment:
1) To rid the body of the cancer as completely as possible.
2) To prevent cancer from returning.
How Is the Type of Breast Cancer Treatment Determined?
The type of breast cancer treatment recommended to you by your doctor will depend on the size and location of the tumor in the breast, the results of lab tests done on the cancer cells and the stage or extent of the disease. Your doctor usually considers your age and general health as well as your feelings about the treatment options.
What Are the Types of Breast Cancer Treatment?
Breast cancer treatments are local or systemic.
Local treatments are used to remove, destroy or control the cancer cells in a specific area, such as the breast. They include:
- Surgery, either mastectomy or lumpectomy -- also called breast-conserving therapy. There are also different types of mastectomies and lumpectomies.
- Radiation therapy
Systemic treatments are used to destroy or control cancer cells all over the body. They include:
- Chemotherapy uses drugs to to kill cancer cells. Side effects can include nausea, hair loss, early menopause, hot flashes, fatigue, and temporarily lowered blood counts.
- Hormone therapy , including tamoxifen in premenopausal women, and the aromatase inhibitors Arimidex, Aromasin and Femara in postmenopausal women. Hormone therapy uses drugs to prevent hormones, especially estrogen, from promoting the growth of breast cancer cells that may remain after breast cancer surgery. Side effects can include hot flashes and vaginal dryness.
- Biological Therapy such as Herceptin, works by using the body's immune system to destroy cancer cells. Herceptin targets breast cancer cells that have high levels of a protein called HER2.
Systemic therapy can be given after local treatment (adjuvant therapy) or before (neoadjuvant therapy). Adjuvant therapy is used after local treatments to kill any cancer cells that remain in the body and may be in other parts of the body.
A patient may have just one form of breast cancer treatment or a combination, depending on her needs.
Tips to Remember about Choosing Breast Cancer Treatment
Although there are some typical breast cancer treatment regimens, women do have choices.
- Be sure to discuss with your doctor all the risks and benefits of each treatment option and how they relate to your own lifestyle.
- Consider joining a support group to help you address the emotional issues surrounding your diagnosis and in choosing therapy.
- Ask your doctor about participating in a clinical trial.
WebMD Medical Reference
Breast Cancer Guide
VIVELLE-DOT (estradiol transdermal system) IS AVAILABLE BY PRESCRPTION ONLY.
INDICATION
Vivelle-Dot is used after menopause to: reduce moderate to severe hot flashes; treat moderate to severe dryness, itching and burning in or around the vagina; help reduce your chances of getting osteoporosis (thin weak bones); and treat certain conditions in which a young woman's ovaries do not produce enough estrogens naturally. Vivelle-Dot 0.025 mg/day is only used to prevent osteoporosis from menopause. If you use Vivelle-Dot only to treat your dryness, itching, and burning in and around your vagina or if you use Vivelle-Dot only to prevent osteoporosis from menopause, talk with your healthcare professional about whether a different treatment or medicine without estrogens might be better for you.
IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION
Estrogens increase the chances of getting cancer of the uterus (womb). Report any unusual vaginal bleeding right away while you are taking estrogens. Vaginal bleeding after menopause may be a warning sign of cancer of the uterus (womb).
Do not use estrogens with or without progestins to prevent heart disease, heart attacks, or strokes. Using estrogens with or without progestins may increase your chances of getting heart attacks, strokes, breast cancer, and blood clots. Using estrogens with progestins may increase your risk of dementia (decline in memory and thinking skills).
Vivelle-Dot should not be used if you have unusual vaginal bleeding; currently have or have had certain cancers, including cancer of the breast or uterus; had a stroke or heart attack in the recent past (for example, in the past year); currently have or have had blood clots; currently have or have had liver problems; or think you may be, or know that you are, pregnant.
The most common side effects that may occur with Vivelle-Dot are headache, breast tenderness, and back pain.
You and your healthcare professional should talk regularly about whether you still need treatment with Vivelle-Dot.
You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088.
Please see Full Prescribing Information for Vivelle-Dot.
October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and a new study reveals why a high number of women with the disease still prefer to have the entire breast surgically removed instead of just the tumor. It's not always because doctors recommend it.
