Breast Cancer Patients Report Better Quality of Life, Less Side Effects
Would you rather have five weeks or three weeks of radiation treatments? How about less total radiation to your breast? Throw in better quality of life, better satisfaction with your body image, and effective prevention of a breast cancer recurrence. That's what researchers found at the START (Standardisation of Breast Radiotherapy) Trials.
This new schedule of radiation for breast cancer is called hypofractionated radiation. Each dose of radiation was higher than the standard now used for external beam radiation. Patients were given fewer radiation treatments, saving them time, travel, disruption of schedule, and cost. When researchers surveyed the patients in the START Trials, they asked the women about their personal perspective of body image, skin changes, breast texture, arm and shoulder symptoms. The START study covered a five-year period and encompassed 2,208 women in the UK. None of the patients felt just as good as they had before breast cancer treatment, but the women who had the hypofractionated three-week radiation reported lower rates of breast hardness, changes in breast shape, and arm and shoulder pain.
But was the shorter treatment effective at preventing a recurrence of breast cancer? The study shows that both methods are equally effective at discouraging cancer from reappearing. So why make any changes from standard radiation treatments? In an related comment, Julie Schnur from the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, says that these findings should make: "The understanding and assessment of patients' experiences a top priority."
I have just come from http://breastcancer.about.com/od/risk/a/lump_overview.htm looking for information for a friend who has just had a lump diagnosed. I was disgusted to find at the bottom of the page a sponsored link to a funeral website with the link entitled “What does a funeral cost”. I suggest you seriously rethink the sponsorship advertising dollars you accept and the effect such advertising may have on visitors. I could not believe my eyes – it is an utter disgrace that such information should be displayed on an early diagnosis info page and you should be ashamed.