Is oncoplastic surgery a better option than a mastectomy?

This study aimed to investigate the long-term effectiveness of oncoplastic surgery in treating breast cancer patients.

This study concluded oncoplastic surgery was efficient and could be used instead of a mastectomy in treating breast cancer patients. 

Breast conserving surgery (BCS) is used with radiotherapy as the standard treatment for breast cancer (BC) patients. BCS involves removing part of the breast instead of the whole breast as in a mastectomy. It is often combined with radiotherapy which uses radiation to kill cancer cells. BCS is suited to small tumors.

Oncoplastic surgery (OPS) can be used for larger tumors that may otherwise require a mastectomy. OPS involves a combination of surgery to remove the tumor and reshape the breast. It is also known as breast reconstruction surgery.

It is not known whether OPS is as successful as a mastectomy over a long-time period.

This study involved 350 BC patients who underwent OPS from 2004 to 2016. 62.6% of patients who underwent OPS had invasive ductal carcinoma, 25.1% had ductal carcinoma and 12.3% had invasive lobular carcinoma. The oncologic outcomes (effect on the tumor) were measured over an average of 55 months. The average tumor size was 26 mm.

12.6% of tumors removed involved a specimen margin. This is an area of tissue around the tumor that has also been removed. Of the patients with a specimen margin, 87.4% had a clear margin. A clear margin is one which is free of cancer cells and indicates success of tumor removal.

Breast conservation was achieved in 92% of BC patients who received OPS. The 5-year local recurrence rate (return of cancer at the same site) was 2.2%. The 5-year distant recurrence rate (return of cancer at another site) was 12.4%.

This study concluded that OPS allows wide resections with free margins and can be used to treat BC patients with large tumors instead of a mastectomy. 

Consult your physician about the possibility of OPS.