Breast-conserving surgery has become a routine procedure in developed countries, while less than 10% of breast cancer patients in China are treated with breast-conserving surgery, and some doctors are accustomed to “cutting” a pair of beautiful and healthy breasts, which is the wish of every woman. However, every 26 seconds, one woman in the world has her breasts removed due to breast cancer, which not only brings physical trauma to women and leads to a lower quality of life, but also leaves a psychological shadow on women. Many breast cancer patients have low self-esteem and depressed psychological reaction after total mastectomy, which seriously affects their normal life. Surgery has always been the main treatment for breast cancer. There are various surgical procedures for breast cancer, commonly used are radical mastectomy with mastectomy, modified radical mastectomy, total mastectomy and partial mastectomy with breast preservation. Breast-conserving surgery for breast cancer has become a routine surgical method for breast cancer in developed countries such as Europe and the United States because of its efficacy and cosmetic effect in long-term follow-up, and is increasingly favored by patients as the first choice for treating early-stage breast cancer. Early detection, early diagnosis, and early treatment are the three early concepts that enable most women in developed countries to benefit from breast-conserving surgery, but less than 10% of breast cancer patients in China receive breast-conserving surgery. Why does breast cancer treatment in China tend to be “one-size-fits-all”? There are three main reasons: First, most women do not have the habit of regular medical checkups and discover the lesions late; second, some patients are afraid that preserving the breast will increase the risk of recurrence and metastasis of cancer cells to the whole body, and they mistakenly believe that only total excision is the safest surgical method; third, some doctors are backward in treatment concept and are accustomed to “cutting” as soon as possible, which makes patients lose the opportunity of breast conservation. Thirdly, some doctors are backward in treatment concept, and they are used to “cut” the whole thing, which makes patients lose the chance of breast conservation. In fact, breast-conserving surgery is still a radical surgery for breast cancer, but it only preserves the breast. Breast-conserving surgery has prerequisites, and not all breast cancer patients can undergo it, but only some early stage patients, usually those with stage II breast cancer, can undergo it. Currently, the medical community is working to expand the indications for breast-conserving surgery, striving to make more breast cancer patients meet the requirements for breast-conserving surgery. For example, preoperative adjuvant therapy to reduce the size of the lump to lower the breast cancer stage, and then breast-conserving surgery can be done. This will eradicate the disease while maintaining the beauty of women. Therefore, improving the early detection rate of breast cancer is the key to successful breast conservation for breast cancer patients. Breast-conserving surgery also requires that the examination and diagnosis are kept up to date. Only when early detection is achieved in diagnosis can breast-conserving surgery be achieved. Of course, there are many new techniques in breast surgery. Some breast cancer patients are not suitable for breast conservation, but breast reconstruction surgery can be performed at the same time as mastectomy, or postponed reconstruction surgery can be performed some time after surgery to recreate beautiful breasts. Breast cancer is a systemic disease and surgical removal alone does not provide the best outcome. Whether it is breast-conserving surgery or radical surgery, it is a local treatment for patients. After the local treatment has achieved the effect of removing the mass, the results are ensured by a combination of radiotherapy, chemotherapy, endocrine therapy and targeted therapy. For suitable patients, there is no significant difference in overall survival rate between breast-conserving surgery and radical surgery, while the former can not only keep the physical features of patients, but also less damage and complications, which can significantly improve the quality of life. As the concept of breast cancer treatment is constantly updated, breast-conserving surgery will gradually become the main procedure for breast cancer treatment.