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September 8, 2008 5:55:32 AM CDT

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Double Mastectomies on the Rise

Posted Oct 23, 07 4:46 AM CDT in US,  Science & Health 

(Newser) – More women are choosing to have double mastectomies despite a lack of evidence that such a procedure increases survival for most women, according to a study in the Journal of Oncology. The number of women choosing the procedure after an initial tumor was found in one breast increased 150% over five years. Doctors usually recommend removal of a tumor and surrounding tissue for localized breast cancer, not a mastectomy.

Some speculate that improvements in reconstruction have helped spur the increase, while others believe women can be so "traumatized" by cancer that they want to avoid any future experience will the illness at all costs. But women need to remember the breast "is a sexual organ," cautions one expert, and that removal has serious "implications" for "sex life and sexuality."

Source Los Angeles Times

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    More Women Electing Extra Cancer Surgery More women are going to extremes after a breast cancer diagnosis, opting for double mastectomies instead of single ones or mere lumpectomies, the Washington Post reports. The number rose 150% over 5 years, despite evidence that less-invasive treatments are just as effective in saving lives. "I didn't want to be sitting around for the rest of my life waiting for the cancer to come back," said one 43-year-old nurse who opted for the more radical procedure. More »

This image made available by the Duke University Department of Medicine shows a right breast MRI from a 55 year old woman with extreme breast density. The arrow points to a 2.0 cm rapidly enhancing lesion...   (Associated Press)
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  (Associated Press)
This image made available by the Duke University Department of Medicine shows a right breast mammogram from a 55 year old woman with extreme breast density. (AP Photo/Duke University Department of Medicine,...   (Associated Press)
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breast cancer  • women's health  • study  • cancer treatment  • mastectomy  • prophylactic mastectomy


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