Treatment Options for Breast Cancer
The main treatments for breast cancer include:
· Surgery
· Chemotherapy
· Radiotherapy
· Hormonal therapy (also called endocrine therapy)
· Targeted cancer drugs
· Bone strengthening drugs (bisphosphonates)
You might have a combination of these treatments, depending on your situation and the type of cancer. Your medical team will take many different factors into account when deciding which treatment is best for you.
Before you start any treatment, it is important to ask your doctor the following:
Has my treatment been discussed and recommended by a multidisciplinary team?
What is a Multidisciplinary team approach in cancer care?
Cancer care and treatment is complicated, requiring a team-based model of care for cancer patients. Multidisciplinary Teams (MDTs), also known as tumour boards, play a vital role in contemporary cancer care and are often considered the “gold standard” for clinical decision making in diagnosis and treatment. In MDT meetings, a group of specialists consisting of medical, nursing and allied professionals regularly discuss their patients to cooperatively decide on the most beneficial course of treatment tailored to their patients’ needs.
Evidence from clinical studies consistently indicates that successful implementation of MDTs by hospitals leads to improved outcomes in terms of diagnosis, treatment planning, patient survival, patient satisfaction, and clinician satisfaction as a result of successful cooperation and communication. MDTs have been widely implemented throughout Europe, North America and Australia; in the UK NHS, they have become a mandatory element of cancer care.
Benefits of Multidisciplinary Approach:
- Improved Patient care
- Staging Accuracy
- Receiving care in accordance with clinical practice and standard guidelines.
- Improved communication
- Cost-effective care
- Improved clinical and patient satisfaction