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Since breast cancer is very common disease some of the patients who are diagnosed with breast cancer may be pregnant. In fact one in every 3000 pregnant women may have a diagnosis of breast cancer. About 5% of the breast cancers are initially diagnosed in women who are either pregnant or breast-feeding. In a pregnant breast cancer patient the choice of breast cancer surgery is usually mastectomy. This is because they cannot have radiation therapy, which is an integral part of the breast conservation strategy. |
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Radiation therapy while pregnant can cause serious damage to the fetus. Mastectomy is usually welltolerated during pregnancy. Findings from several recent studies suggest that chemotherapy may be administered with moderate safety if the pregnancy has passed the first three months, which is a critical period for fetal organ formation. It is suggested that patient who are in the first three months of pregnancy may wait until the critical period of fetal organ formation is over before receiving chemotherapy. |
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