Treatment The expert staff at the Samved Hospiital Comprehensive Breast Center is committed to making each patient’s treatment as effective and comfortable as possible. Because every woman is different, the program focuses on individualized treatment. Our multi-disciplinary team uses the latest techniques and therapies to give our patients not only the highest quality care, but also the best chance at beating their disease.

Breast Care Home     Screening     Diagnosis     Treatment     Support & Integrative Care

BENIGN BREAST DISEASE

Fibrocystic Changes

It is common for women to experience breast changes, more so in young age but can happen at any age, such as tenderness or lumps, during their menstrual cycle as a result of fluctuations in estrogen and progesterone levels. Some women have fibrocystic breast changes, or general breast lumpiness, that does not require medical treatment. IT IS JUST AN EXAGGERATED RESPONSE OF THE BREAST TISSUES TO THE HORMONES!

Any change in the breasts can raise concerns, but it helps to remember that most breast problems are not caused by cancer. Breast cancer is likely to develop at any age. This just requires reassurance by the breast surgeon.In case of intractable pain some form of medical treatment like Vitamin E or Danazol may be required.

Cysts

Aspiration may be the final diagnosis and treatment.Refilling may require surgery.

Fibroadenomas(Solid tumors)

These are solid tumors occurring in young females again due to hormonal changes.They could be single or multiple.They could occur in both the breasts simaltenously.They are NON CANCEREOUS and require surgical removal.The removed lumps are then sent for final biopsy or histopathological examination.

BREAST CANCER:

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy is a widely used breast cancer treatment that may help patients live longer and improve their quality of life. Chemotherapy may be used before surgery to shrink a tumor or as adjuvant therapy after surgery to reduce the risk of a recurrence. It may be used as the primary treatment when the cancer has spread to other parts of the body.

Chemotherapy drugs may be given intravenously, by injection, or by mouth. The drugs then travel through the bloodstream to reach cancer cells in most parts of the body. The chemotherapy is given in cycles, usually over a total of six months, with each period of treatment followed by some time for recovery.
Our team of Oncophysicians takes care of this aspect.

Radiation Therapy

Radiation therapy is used after a lumpectomy or mastectomy to kill any cancer cells that may remain in the breast, chest wall or underarm area. This can help reduce the chances of a recurrence. Radiation treatment, which uses high-energy rays or particles to destroy cancer cells, may also be prescribed before surgery to shrink a large tumor or treat cancer that has spread outside the breast. Your radiation oncologist will recommend the type and duration of radiation treatment that are best for you.

• External Beam
• Mammosite Brachytherapy
• Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT)

Hormone Therapy

Because many breast cancers are hormone-dependent, the goal of hormone therapy is to deprive cancer cells of the estrogen that stimulates their growth. Hormone therapy may involve surgery to remove the ovaries (which make female hormones), or drugs such as tamoxifen (which simulate hormones). Tamoxifen is the most common anti-estrogen drug. It is usually prescribed for five years after surgery—taken daily in pill form—to reduce the risk of the cancer returning. Tamoxifen is also used to prevent breast cancer in high-risk women and treat metastatic breast cancer.

In addition to drugs like Tamoxifen, there are aromatase inhibitors (Femara, Arimidex, Aromasin) that stop estrogen production in postmenopausal women. These drugs have fewer side effects than tamoxifen, but can cause osteoporosis and bone fractures. Because these drugs do not stop the ovaries of premenopausal women from producing estrogen, they are prescribed only for postmenopausal women.

Biological Therapy

Biological therapy, also called immunotherapy, biotherapy or biological response therapy, is a relatively new form of cancer treatment. Biological therapies include immune substances made from a living organism or its products that can be reproduced in a laboratory. These manufactured immune substances trigger the patient’s own immune system to react, causing the body’s immune system to stop cancer growth, make cancer cells more recognizable as foreign (so the body’s own immune system will destroy them), boost the killing power of the body’s immune system cells, repair or replace normal cells damaged in treatment, or prevent cancer cells from spreading to other parts of the body. Examples of biotherapies include monoclonal antibodies, cytokines, interleukins, colony–stimulating factors, vaccines and gene therapy.

Surgery

Surgery is often needed to treat breast cancer. Options include a mastectomy to remove the entire breast or breast-conserving surgery (lumpectomy) followed by radiation treatments. Samples are also taken from the lymph nodes under the arm pits, and breast reconstruction can be done at the time of surgery or later.

• Lumpectomy

This is a surgical procedure to remove a small tumor while preserving the rest of the breast. This procedure is often recommended for women with early-stage breast cancer. The surgeon will also remove a margin of healthy tissue surrounding the tumor to make sure that no cancer cells remain. Patients also go through radiation therapy and chemotherapy following a lumpectomy to prevent local recurrence of cancer in the preserved breast. Oncoplasty is a form of reconstructive surgery. It may be an option for improved cosmetic results following lumpectomy.

• Mastectomy

This surgery involves removal of the entire breast, including as much breast tissue as possible. Radiation therapy may not be needed after a mastectomy, but it may be recommended if there is any concern that cancer cells might still be in the breast area.

Most women who have this surgery have a modified radical mastectomy that involves removal of the breast and some underarm lymph nodes. A radical mastectomy is a more extensive operation that involves removal of the breast, lymph nodes and the pectoral muscles under the breast.

A mastectomy is often recommended when there is a large tumor or the cancer has spread in various small pockets throughout the breast.

• Sentinel Node Biopsy

This procedure eliminates the need to remove a number of lymph nodes under the arm in order to determine whether cancer has spread to the lymph nodes. Instead, surgeons are able to find and remove the “sentinel node,” which is the first lymph node into which a tumor drains and the one where cancer cells are most likely to be found. If cancer cells are found, the surgeon will remove additional lymph nodes. If the sentinel node is free of cancer, more extensive lymph node surgery will not be necessary and the recovery process will be easier for the patient. A sentinel node biopsy is not appropriate for every patient. The surgeon decides whether this is a good option given the size of the tumor and other considerations.

• Reconstructive Surgery

Many women choose to have reconstructive surgery to restore the appearance of the breast after a mastectomy. Options include breast implants or the use of tissue from other parts of your body (autologous tissue reconstruction). Some procedures can be done immediately after a mastectomy, or you may choose to do reconstruction later. For those who do not want reconstruction, external prostheses are available. These breast forms feel natural.

COSMETIC BREAST SURGERY

Our clinic also offers the all kinds of cosmetic and reconstructive surgery of the breast-

• Augmentation-enlargements,implants for small breasts
• Reduction for huge breasts
• Breast lift for sagging breasts
• Reconstruction after breast remova