Patient misconceptions in breast cancer treatment

  Myth 1: Treatment of breast cancer should not be arbitrary, but strictly follow the treatment norms of evidence-based medicine.  Misconception 2: Surgery is a panacea. Breast cancer is a systemic disease, and breast lump is a local manifestation. Treatment emphasizes reasonable and comprehensive treatment, including surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, endocrine therapy, targeted therapy, etc.  Misconception 3: Not paying attention to initial treatment. Don’t put a lot of hope on those remedies, and cherish the opportunity of initial diagnosis and treatment extremely.  Myth 4: Chemotherapy is blindly small. Chemotherapy can reduce the risk of breast cancer recurrence by an average of l/4 and the risk of death by l/7. The value of chemotherapy is highly related to the dose intensity, and the drug dose is calculated according to the patient’s body surface area. It is proved that the tolerance of chemotherapy in Chinese people is not a problem, and the toxic side effects of chemotherapy cannot be viewed in isolation.  Misconception 5: Neglecting endocrine therapy and exaggerating the toxic side effects of triamcinolone acetonide.  Misconception 6: Neglecting review follow-up. The chance of recurrence in the first 2-3 years before 5 years accounts for 1/2 and 3/4 of the lifetime chance of recurrence, and the follow-up needs to observe the occurrence of contralateral breast cancer, local recurrence on the affected side, recurrence after breast-conserving surgery, systemic metastasis elsewhere, and some drug side effects during the treatment process. Lifelong follow-up is beneficial to oneself and others. It is recommended that the initial two years, every 3-4 months; the 3rd-5th years, every 6 months; the 6th year period every 12 months.  Misconception 7: Abuse of health care products and Chinese medicine. It is not a substitute for standardized treatment.