What Is a Lumpectomy?

A lumpectomy is an option for some patients who want to preserve the appearance of the breast. If the tumor is cancerous, you will most likely receive radiation therapy after your lumpectomy. The surgery can help in lowering the risks of recurring breast cancer, and it can also be used to remove precancerous abnormalities. 

The surgery can help in lowering the risks of recurring breast cancer, and it can also be used to remove precancerous abnormalities.

If you have multiple tumors, a very large tumor, or cancer that has spread throughout your breast, a full mastectomy may be recommended over a lumpectomy.  But sometimes we can offer hormonal therapy or chemotherapy to reduce the size of the tumor before surgery.  This is called neoadjuvant therapy.

It is a form of breast-conserving or also known to be breast-preservation surgery. There have been multiple names given to the breast-conserving surgery and they are, biopsy, partial mastectomy, wedge resection, lumpectomy, quadrantectomy, re-excision. Technically speaking, lumpectomy is known to be a kind of partial mastectomy since out here only the part of the breast tissues are removed. But again there would be wide difference on the amount of tissues to be removed.

Quadrantectomy would mean that roughly there would be removal of a quarter of the breast. Hence it becomes important to understand from the surgeon on exactly how much of the breast would be gone post the surgery and what kind of scar the individual would have lifelong.

When deciding whether to opt for a lumpectomy, I take a detailed medical history so the patient can determine if this surgery is a good option. Lumpectomies are performed so we can keep the natural look and feel of our patients' breasts, but this is not always the best option.

A lumpectomy is considered a form of breast preservation or breast conserving surgery since the whole breast is not removed. The appearance of a woman's breast can impact her self-esteem and mental and emotional well-being. Not only do women with breast cancer worry about their disease, but they are also rightfully concerned about how their condition will impact the appearance of their bodies.

A lumpectomy can be performed when a woman has just one tumor, and only if it is a small or medium size tumor. In these cases, we can go into the breast and only remove the tumor, leaving the rest of the breast tissue. Many times this procedure is followed by radiation therapy as a method to treat or rid potential cancer cells.

After a lumpectomy, the breast can still have a natural shape and a good cosmetic appearance. And we always provide our patients with realistic expectations and what they can expect after surgery. 

In case if the tumour turns out to be cancerous then the individual would most likely receive radiation therapy post the completion of the lumpectomy. This surgery is known to help in reducing the risk of What Is a Lumpectomy the breast cancer to recur again in future and it can also be used for removing precancerous abnormalities.

For those individuals who suffer from multiple tumours, a very huge kind of tumour or cancer which has now spread to in the entire breast then it would be recommended for that individual to go in for a complete mastectomy instead of a lumpectomy. But at times the doctors can also look to offer a hormonal therapy or chemotherapy for reducing the size of the tumour before starting the surgery. This is known to called as the neoadjuvant therapy.

While deciding on whether to opt for a lumpectomy the doctor would firstly take a complete medical details and history of the individual so the patient can then determine if this surgery would turn out to be a good option for them. The main reason why lumpectomy is performed is to keep the natural look as well as the feel of the patient’s breast but this does not prove to the option always.

As mentioned earlier a lumpectomy is mostly considered to be a form of preserving the breast so that the entire breast is not removed. The appearance of the breast of the woman can impact their self-esteem as well as it would impact the mental and the emotional well-being of the individual. The women suffering from this disease not only worry about their condition but they also get concerned about how this condition would now have an impact on their overall appearance on how others would react to it.

This procedure is mostly performed when it has been diagnosed that the woman only has one tumour and only if this tumour is small or medium in size. Post the lumpectomy procedure the breast would still maintain its natural shape as well as a good cosmetic appearance. It is best to set realistic expectations and what can be expected from and after the surgery.