STAT July 25, 2024
Breast cancer surgeons have tended not to push patients towards bilateral mastectomy, since data have long shown that the complete removal of both breasts doesn’t improve survival. New data from a large epidemiological study affirmed that, but an accompanying finding is puzzling. Breast cancer survivors who ended up developing a second breast cancer in the opposite or contralateral breast had a higher risk of death, even though preventing that cancer with surgery didn’t change outcomes.
“That seems like a paradox,” said Steven Narod, a breast cancer researcher and physician at Women’s College Hospital in Toronto and the lead author on the study. “If you get a contralateral breast cancer, your risk of dying goes up. But preventing it doesn’t improve...
Today's Sponsors
Today's Sponsor