What is breast cancer and how is it treated?

Breast cancer is one of the common malignant tumors in women, and its incidence rate accounts for 7-10% of all kinds of malignant tumors in China, second only to cervical cancer. The age of onset is mostly 40-60 years old. The incidence rate of male breast cancer is extremely low. If breast cancer is diagnosed early and treated appropriately, its prognosis is relatively good, for example, the 10-year survival rate of stage I breast cancer can be as high as 90%. There are many ways to treat breast cancer. Surgery, together with chemotherapy, radiotherapy, endocrine therapy, immunotherapy and Chinese medicine are the most effective and low-toxic treatment options for breast cancer.  Surgical treatment: The main treatment for breast cancer is surgical resection. For early, intermediate and late stage breast cancer patients, surgery should be preferred as long as their physical condition can tolerate surgery. The purpose of surgical treatment is to maximize local control of the primary tumor and regional lymph nodes, reduce local recurrence, and improve the survival rate of patients.  Chemotherapy: Chemical anti-cancer drugs are used to treat cancer, referred to as “chemotherapy”, including chemotherapy before, during and after surgery. Especially, postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy is the most commonly used and has the most experience. Its purpose is to eliminate microscopic cancer lesions remaining after surgery, so as to prolong recurrence-free survival, reduce mortality and improve survival rate. The basic principle of postoperative chemotherapy is early, adequate and effective combination chemotherapy regimen.