So far Dr. Amy Bremner has created 7 blog entries.
In true Hollywood fashion, when a celebrity speaks the masses listen.
That's precisely what happened when Angelina Jolie penned an editorial in The New York Times that shined the spotlight on breast cancer and genetics, specifically genes that can cause the disease.
Quickly dubbed the "Angelina Jolie Effect," the number of women requesting a blood test to reveal if they're carriers of the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes has nearly doubled since the editorial's 2013 publication, according to various studies including one by the online journal Breast Cancer Research.
Many breast cancer patients are unfamiliar with basic information about their disease. Researchers who recently surveyed patients regarding tumor stage, grade and hormone receptor status were surprised by the amount of women without accurate knowledge of these cancer characteristics. Without information about their condition, women miss out on opportunities to improve their health and outcomes.
Do Breast Cancer Patients Understand Their Disease?
A recent study revealed great news for women facing early-stage invasive breast cancer: choosing to preserve some breast tissue rather than removing the entire breast isn't inviting more risk.
Actually, the survival rate for women choosing lumpectomies (also referred to as Breast-Conserving Surgery) and radiation, over mastectomies is significantly higher, according to the 2013 study.
Even when coupled with various factors – age, socioeconomic status, race, tumor grade, proportion of positive nodes and year of diagnosis – women were less likely to die with a lumpectomy.
When Should a Woman Get a Mammogram?
Mammogram and party may seem like quite the oxymoron, yet the festive atmosphere at Breastlink's Temecula Valley center proved the two words can live together in harmony.
A guitar player comfortably seated by the office front door strummed her instrument, providing a nice palate of background music. A table resplendent with pink and white sweets, including a tiered strawberry-pink Bundt cake, candy sticks, lollipops and gumballs, added to the festivities.
Mastectomy or lumpectomy? Chemotherapy? Breast reconstruction? Radiation?
These are just a few of the decisions a breast cancer patient faces after receiving her diagnosis.
With so many medical advancements and earlier detection of the disease, treating breast cancer today also means making a lot of decisions. A crucial part of your treatment is to better understand what to ask your doctor, what choices you have and what sources to reach for if you want to conduct your own research to answer your breast cancer questions.
Part of my commitment to deliver the highest quality and most advanced care to patients is to explore cutting-edge breast cancer techniques and treatments. I'm excited to share with the Breastlink community that we completed our first intraoperative radiotherapy (IORT) procedure, using the XOFT Axxent® eBx System.
IORT is a relatively new approach to deliver radiotherapy in conjunction with a lumpectomy. During the surgical procedure, and after the identified breast cancer has been removed, an individualized dose of radiation therapy is specifically targeted to the immediate area around where the cancer was located.