You may be wondering how breast cancer was treated over a hundred years ago. Was chemotherapy also needed at that time? Bili Li, Department of Breast and Thyroid Surgery, Affiliated Hospital of Inner Mongolia Medical University When did radiotherapy start? You must have thought about these questions more than once or twice. All most people know about breast cancer is surgery, the sooner the better, and the more you cut the better. And then/and maybe chemotherapy and radiation. Of course, when it comes to radiation and chemotherapy, the most “headaches” and “scary” things are hair loss and vomiting, and then there is the “killing of white blood cells”. Therefore, we often hear family members make such a request, can we use other methods without chemotherapy or radiotherapy? Well, let’s start with the growth of this “tumor” on the body, to see how it brings pain to human beings, and how it was removed by our predecessors. It goes without saying that in order to remove this “tumor”, the surgeon must have in his hands the awesome lancet – the softly-named surgical “tool”. You will want to know how breast cancer surgery is done, when it was first performed, who invented or created it, and what wonders it has brought to people. Let’s turn the pages of the history of medicine and go through the time tunnel to the distant past, more than a hundred years ago. What do we see – it is deformed, festering breasts, flowing with filthy, foul-smelling pus and blood, stains soaked from the front lapels dirtying the beautiful velvet dresses; cancer cells crawling out of one breast, extending their sinful tentacles to the other breast, and then the whole chest wall. The newborn tumor nodules encircled each other and fused together, like a soldier’s sturdy armor, tightly binding the beautiful women’s breasts in the old days. Some of them are dying and can no longer breathe because their lungs have been devoured by the cancer cells; some of them have been lying on the couch for a long time because the tumors have broken their limbs and destroyed their spines; the highest part of their bodies in the warm beds are no longer the beautiful peaks of their breasts that rise and fall with their breath, but ugly deformed breasts or distended bellies; the women with shy bellies and waddling gait are not necessarily happy Pregnant women, whose lack of protein and compression of the portal vein had allowed a great deal of fluid to seep out into the abdominal cavity – their livers had long since become a breeding ground for cancer cells. Reluctant doctors did everything they could to try to save these poor, cancer-ridden women. They tried everything they could think of, such as branding them with fire, so that the cancer cells would die in the heat and flames. Such methods were somewhat effective, but in the days when there was no anesthesia and no antibiotics, such treatments were tantamount to a form of criminal law for those who were terminally ill. What was even more frightening was that the cancer cells were not effectively stopped in their tracks by this method. Doctors were not discouraged and were still searching. Finally, the advent of anesthesia and antibiotics brought a blessing. Doctors were able to operate on breast cancer patients! The people who benefited were free from the clutches of cancer. However, soon afterward, new lumps grew in the breasts from which the cancer had been removed, the pain resurfaced, and the number of people who received a new lease on life remained limited. People were confused. Doctors resorted to more extensive surgical removals, cutting away the entire breast even for smaller lumps, in an attempt to get rid of all the cancerous cells in one fell swoop. But the tragedy was still unfolding, and the enlarged armpits were no less painful than the breast lumps. Faced with women with bruised and swollen upper limbs, moaning in pain, their swollen armpits caught the attention of one man. This great man was born, with his wisdom and hands, saved thousands of women suffering from breast cancer and their families, opened an epoch-making chapter for the treatment of breast cancer, set up the first monument in the history of breast cancer treatment, and brought the dawn for breast cancer treatment. His team, as well as the surgeons, internists, and radiotherapists who came after him, the scientists who buried themselves in their laboratories, followed in his footsteps, learned from his spirit, and devoted themselves to breast cancer rescue and research. Today, breast cancer is a model for the successful treatment of all solid tumors, and we no longer have to fear breast cancer – because we have new hope and promising, tangible results. (To be continued)