mastectomy

When he arranged to undergo top surgery, Cass Smith-Collins of Las Vegas selected a surgeon touted as an early developer of the procedure who does not contract with insurance. "I had one shot to get the chest that I should have been born with, and I wasn't going to chance it to someone who was not an expert at his craft," he says.

Health & Safety

Sign here? Financial agreements may leave doctors in the driver's seat

5:00am April 30, 2024

Agreeing to an out-of-network doctor's financial policy, which protects their ability to get paid and may be littered with confusing jargon, can create a binding contract that leaves a patient owing.

Health & Safety

'Not Letting It Define Us' — Walking The Runway With Metastatic Breast Cancer

8:23am February 17, 2019

by Elaine Schattner

At a recent fashion show, models came out about their diagnoses — revealing both cancer's scarring effects on their bodies, and their defiant embrace of life.

Nicole O'Hara was diagnosed with breast cancer at 29 years old. She decided to have her mastectomy scars covered up with a tattoo.

VIDEO: Where Mastectomy Scars Raged, A Tattoo Garden Blooms

5:00am August 12, 2017

Nicole O'Hara was 29 when she had a double mastectomy after a cancer diagnosis. She chose to cover the scars with a tattoo that blooms like her garden, with apple blossoms, bluebells and heather.

A change in guidelines for breast cancer surgery has resulted in fewer women having to undergo repeat surgeries.

Fewer Women Need To Undergo Repeat Surgery After Lumpectomy

5:43pm June 05, 2017

by Patti Neighmond

A change in guidelines for lumpectomy surgery in 2014 has already reduced the number of women undergoing additional surgery, including mastectomy, by 16 percent.

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A textured breast implant, left, and a smooth breast implant.

Breast Implants Linked To Rare Blood Cancer In Small Proportion Of Women

2:05pm March 22, 2017

by Rebecca Hersher

The FDA says breast implants with textured surfaces are linked to at least 203 cancer cases, and that nine women have died. Nearly 300,000 people get breast implants each year in the U.S.

More and more surgeries are being performed in outpatient centers, and mastectomy is among them.

More Women Are Having Mastectomies And Going Home The Same Day

11:32am February 22, 2016

by Julie Appleby

There's very little data on how having a mastectomy as same-day outpatient surgery affects a woman's health. Laws in some states have restricted the use of so-called "drive by" mastectomies.

Fear of cancer's return may be driving women with an early diagnosis of breast cancer to have one or both breasts removed, though research shows milder treatment is just as effective.

Mastectomy No Better Than Lumpectomy For Early Breast Cancer

7:23pm December 10, 2015

by Patti Neighmond

A comparison of common treatments for early-stage breast cancer finds lumpectomy with radiation is essentially equal to breast removal in terms of recurrence and survival, with fewer complications.

Ductal carcinoma in situ sometimes can turn into invasive breast cancer, but there's currently no test that can tell when it's dangerous and when it's not.

Treatment Changes For DCIS Haven't Affected Breast Cancer Deaths

2:37pm October 14, 2015

by Nancy Shute

Ductal carcinoma in situ often doesn't turn into breast cancer, but most women have surgery for it. The trend is for less invasive surgery, which hasn't affected survival rates.

Surgeon Seeks To Help Women Navigate Breast Cancer Treatment

3:51pm September 22, 2015

Thirty years ago no one uttered the words "breast cancer" in public. Now there's no shortage of information, but the glut can make it hard for women to make choices about care.

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