Treatment

Surgery. An operation where doctors cut out and remove cancer tissue.
Chemotherapy. Using special medicines, or drugs to shrink or kill the cancer. The drugs can be pills you take or medicines given directly into your veins, or sometimes both.
Hormonal therapy. Some cancers need certain hormones to grow. Hormonal treatment is used to block cancer cells from getting the hormones they need to grow.
Biological therapy. This treatment works with your body's immune system to help it fight cancer or to control side effects from other cancer treatments. Side effects are how your body reacts to drugs or other treatments. Biological therapy is different from chemotherapy, which attacks cancer cells directly.
Radiation. The use of high-energy rays (similar to X-rays) to kill the cancer cells. The rays are aimed at the part of the body where the cancer is located.

It is common for doctors from different specialties to work together in treating breast cancer. Surgeons are doctors that perform operations. Medical oncologists are doctors that treat cancers with medicines. Radiation oncologists are doctors that treat cancers with radiation.

For more information, visit the National Cancer Institute (NCI) – Breast Cancer Treatment Option Overview.

This site can also help you find a doctor or treatment facility

that works in cancer care. Visit Facing Forward: Life After Cancer Treatment

for more information about treatment and links that can help with treatment choices.

Clinical Trials

Clinical trials use new treatment options to see if they are safe and effective. If you have cancer, you may want to take part. Visit the sites listed below for more information.

NIH Clinical Research Trials and You (National Institutes of Health)
Learn About Clinical Trials (National Cancer Institute)
Search for Clinical Trials (National Cancer Institute)
ClinicalTrials.gov (National Institutes of Health)

Complementary and Alternative Medicine

Complementary and alternative medicine

are medicines and health practices that are not standard cancer treatments. Complementary medicine is used in addition to standard treatments, and alternative medicine is used instead of standard treatments. Meditation, yoga, and supplements like vitamins and herbs are some examples.
Many kinds of complementary and alternative medicine have not been tested scientifically and may not be safe. Talk to your doctor

before you start any kind of complementary or alternative medicine.

Which Treatment Is Right for Me?

Choosing the treatment that is right for you may be hard. Talk to your cancer doctor about the treatment options available for your type and stage of cancer. Your doctor can explain the risks and benefits of each treatment and their side effects.
Sometimes people get an opinion from more than one cancer doctor. This is called a "second opinion." Getting a second opinion

may help you choose the treatment that is right for you.