The aim of breast surgery is to:
- remove the breast cancer from the breast
- test whether breast cancer cells have spread to the lymph nodes in the armpit.
Breast surgery for breast cancer involves one of the following:
- surgery to remove the breast cancer and a small margin of healthy tissue around it.
- breast conserving surgery is sometimes called a lumpectomy,complete local excision, partial mastectomy or wide local excision.
Surgery is not commonly used in the treatment of women with metastatic breast cancer.
However, surgery can sometimes be used to treat cancer in the bones, lungs or brain, or more rarely in the liver. Surgery may also be recommended if this is your first diagnosis of breast cancer.
