Mastectomy Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Mastectomy, including details on breast cancer, prosthesis, recovery, surgery, complications.

Guidelines to assure quality in breast cancer surgery.

Rutgers EJ

Department of Surgery, The Netherlands Cancer Institute/Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Hospital, Plesmanlaan 121, 1066 CX Amsterdam, The Netherlands. e.rutgers@nki.nl

The outcome of breast cancer surgery, with respect to cosmetic results, loco regional control and prognostic information from nodal staging, may vary substantially. Optimal breast cancer care starts with a proper surgical act, which can only be performed when optimal imaging and preoperative diagnosis are available. Next, on the basis of all peroperative findings, the right surgical procedure should be indicated after multidisciplinary consultation and discussion, keeping the objective of the final outcome in mind. The surgical act itself is best performed by an experienced surgeon who has maintained their experience after sufficient training. The outcome of the different procedures can be measured according to simple criteria and prospective registration. All possible surgical procedures, the indication-objectives, the training-objectives and outcome measures are described.

Published 18 July 2005 in Eur J Surg Oncol, 31(6): 568-76.
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