Angus B Gordon Consultant Breast Surgeon

Female Doctor smiling with staff and patients in the background

Fortunately on most occasions a woman aged 30–60 with a breast lump will have a benign cyst containing fluid. Some women have many cysts in one or both breasts which may be too small to feel.

Breast Cancer Management has altered and evolved considerably over the last 50 years. However, the basic treatment options for breast cancer, as indeed in most malignant disease, remain unchanged.

These may be summarised as:

•	Surgeon - Surgery and surgical options
•	Medical Oncologist - Medical treatment with both endocrine (hormone) treatment and chemotherapy
•	Clinical Oncologist - Radiation treatment or radiotherapy

Each one of the specialties are usually carried out by separate doctors, although some clinical oncologists are also medical oncologists (and referred to as radiation oncologists). As 40,000 women develop breast cancer a year many lumps will prove to be malignant, in fact age is the single biggest risk factor for breast cancer. A woman of 80 with a lump is more likely to have a breast cancer than a woman of 45.