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 Breast Conserving TherapyBreast-Conserving Therapy For years, surgery has been the first line attack against breast cancer. Today, the goal is precise, targeted surgery to preserve as much of the healthy breast and surrounding tissues as possible, conserving the breast. Fortunately, with early detection, most women can have a lumpectomy followed with radiation and/or chemotherapy. A lumpectomy may be referred to as segmental or partial where the breast is conserved. A lymph-node dissection or sentinel lymph node biopsy is often done at the same time as the lumpectomy. A sentinel lymph node biopsy (SNLB) is a relatively new technique used to evaluate whether a woman’s breast cancer has spread to the lymph nodes under the arm. With SNLB, the surgeon is able to identify the first (sentinel) lymph node which filters fluid draining away from the area of the breast that contained the breast cancer. If the cancer cells are breaking away from the tumor and traveling away from your breast via the lymph system, the sentinel node is more likely than other lymph nodes to contain the cancer. The surgeon tries to remove a cluster of two-or three nodes and those closest to the sentinel node to spare the side effects of a standard lymph node dissection and complications such as lymphadema. • Do not ignore any slight increase in swelling of arm, hand, fingers, or chest wall |