Surgical Cancer Treatment

If you have been diagnosed with breast cancer, your team of doctors will recommend an individualized treatment plan that will work best for you. Many times, the recommended treatment strategy involves surgery. 

While the thought of any type of surgery can create feelings of anxiety, major advances in breast cancer surgery in the recent past enable women to preserve much of the healthy breast and surrounding areas.

Consequently, you may be able to choose which type of breast surgery to have: breast-sparing surgery that removes the cancer and leaves as much of the breast as possible, or surgery that removes the entire breast, which is called a mastectomy.

Patients have several surgical options which are typically determined by the size, location and type of breast cancer you have. You and your surgeon will decide which option offers the best eradication and recovery for you. 

BayCare's surgical services for women with breast cancer include ultrasound-guided and stereotactic breast biopsies, sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy, breast-conserving lumpectomy and breast-removing mastectomy.

BayCare also offers the latest technology in breast surgery, Hidden Scar™ Breast Cancer Surgery, which is an advanced approach to removing cancerous tissue through a single incision made in inconspicuous areas to minimize visible scarring.

By utilizing this approach, surgeons are able to preserve a natural-looking breast by sparing the nipple, areola and surrounding tissue. The Hidden Scar approach may also ease the emotional impact of breast cancer surgery, in that patients have little to no visible reminder of the surgery, and experience a more natural looking breast reconstruction. Patients who undergo this approach are also at no higher risk of recurrence than patients who undergo any other type of technique.