| Treatment varies according to the type and | | | | also be removed. Modified radical mastectomy is |
| stage of cancer, but surgery remains the first | | | | the removal of the breast, underarm lymph |
| choice for most tumors. The majority of | | | | nodes, and sometimes part of the chest muscle. |
| operations now are less disfiguring than the radical | | | | The amount of tissue removed from the |
| mastectomy that was standard until the 1970s. | | | | underarm depends on the spread of the tumor. |
| Operations for breast cancer are Extended radical | | | | This remains the most common operation for |
| mastectomy involves removal of the breast, | | | | women with invasive breast cancer. Total, or |
| underarm lymph nodes, and underlying chest | | | | simple, mastectomy is the removal of the entire |
| muscles. This procedure, rarely performed today, | | | | breast, including its extensions to the armpit and |
| is reserved for women with large tumors that | | | | some times near the collarbone. Because the |
| are attached to or have invaded the chest muscle | | | | lymph nodes are left intact, radiation therapy |
| and its connective tissues. If the mammary lymph | | | | usually follows the operation. |
| nodes deep in the chest are involved, they will | | | | |