Why Choose Treatment?
- teresaamadrigal
- May 7, 2025
- 3 min read
The Role of Treatments:
How Breast Cancer is Treated and Why It Matters
If you or someone you love has been diagnosed with breast cancer, one of the first things you’ll hear about is treatment; but what does that really mean?
When you’re staring down a sea of medical words like chemotherapy, hormone therapy, surgery, and radiation, it can feel overwhelming. When I first heard the name of my cancer, I couldnt memorize it for weeks. I kept looking back at my paperwork to remember the type and the spelling.
Nevertheless, I want you to know that every treatment recommendation is tailored to your specific situation, with the goal of giving you the best possible chance at beating the cancer and living your life fully.
Let’s walk through what these treatments do and why they matter.
Why Are Treatments So Important?
Breast cancer doesn’t just stay in one place. Even a tiny tumor can send out cancer cells that travel through the lymphatic system or bloodstream, setting up shop in other parts of the body. That’s why treatments aim to tackle both the main tumor (usually in the breast) and any sneaky cancer cells that might have wandered off. Think of it as a team effort because. the different treatments working together cover all the bases and keep cancer from coming back.
Surgery: The First Step for Many
Surgery is often the first step in treating breast cancer. Depending on the size and location of the tumor, your surgeon might recommend a lumpectomy (removing just the tumor and a small margin of surrounding tissue) or a mastectomy(removing the entire breast). During surgery, the surgeon may also remove some axillary lymph nodes (these are small, bean-shaped glands in the armpit area) to check if the cancer has spread. This step helps doctors understand how far the cancer has traveled and guides decisions about other treatments.
Radiation Therapy: Dusting Off Cancer Cells
Radiation therapy uses high-energy beams to kill cancer cells left behind after surgery. It’s like giving the area around the tumor site a deep clean to reduce the risk of the cancer coming back. Most often, radiation is focused on the breast or chest wall and sometimes the lymph node areas.
Chemotherapy: Systemic Cancer Fighter
Chemotherapy uses powerful drugs that travel throughout your entire body to find and destroy cancer cells, wherever they might be hiding. It’s especially important for cancers that are larger, have spread to lymph nodes, or have certain aggressive features. While chemotherapy can bring side effects like hair loss, fatigue, and nausea, it’s often a critical part of stopping cancer in its tracks.
Personal Note: Hair grows back, your energy comes back and your nausea does go away. Recovery goes by fast!
Hormone Therapy: Blocking the Fuel
Some breast cancers grow in response to hormones like estrogen or progesterone. These are called hormone receptor-positive cancers. Hormone therapy blocks these hormones or lowers their levels in the body, essentially starving the cancer cells of the fuel they need to grow. Medications like tamoxifen or aromatase inhibitors are often used to keep the cancer at bay.
Targeted Therapy: Precision Attacks
If your cancer is HER2-positive, it means the cancer cells have too much of a protein called HER2, which makes them grow faster. Targeted therapies like trastuzumab (Herceptin) are designed to specifically attack this protein, slowing or stopping the cancer’s growth. This is a game-changer for many people with HER2-positive cancer, giving them a powerful weapon against the disease.
Immunotherapy: The New Frontier
For some cases, especially triple-negative breast cancer, doctors may recommend immunotherapy. This new type of treatment helps your own immune system recognize and destroy cancer cells. While it’s still being studied, it’s showing promise in giving people with aggressive breast cancers another option. I experienced this treatment myself.
A Personal Note
No matter what type of breast cancer you’re facing, remember that your treatment plan is carefully crafted for you. Everyone is different! Each option: surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, targeted therapy, immunotherapy, plays a role in giving you the best possible outcome. It can feel overwhelming, but you’re not alone. Lean on your medical team, ask questions, and take it one step at a time.
Sources
American Cancer Society. “Breast Cancer Treatment.” American Cancer Society, 2023.
Mayo Clinic. “Breast Cancer Treatment.” Mayo Clinic, 2023.
“Metastatic Breast Cancer Treatment.” Healthline,
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