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Many mastectomies unnecessary

A study in the October 17, 2002 New England Journal of Medicine finds that mastectomies are often unnecessary for women with breast cancer. The results of this study confirm data from similar studies conducted in the 1970s and 1980s which also show the procedures are often unnecessary. Quite simply, the researchers found that in reviewing cases from the last 20 years, women with breast cancer who had only the diseased tissue removed (lumpectomy) survived at virtually the same rate as women who had their entire breast and associated surrounding tissue removed (radical mastectomy). Despite the earlier studies and statistics that found lumpectomy was just as successful as radical mastectomy, many doctors felt that the less radical approach would cause more deaths in the long run. This explains why 29% of the 2500 women involved in this study who were good candidates for the less invasive surgery were not even informed about their options by their doctors. In a related editorial, Dr. Monica Morrow, a breast cancer specialist wrote that this study should convince "even the most determined skeptics that mastectomy is not superior to breast conservation." Commentary: We hope Dr. Morrow is right but past reaction doesn't suggest that the "determined skeptics" will change their minds, no matter how much information to the contrary they encounter.

 

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