New surgery hope in breast cancer battle

A new way of treating breast cancer could dramatically reduce the time it takes patients to recover from surgery.

Scientists believe less invasive operations will still remove cancerous tissue but leave healthy areas unaffected.

Breast cancer is the most common form of the disease in women, with 38,000 cases diagnosed each year. The average woman has a one in nine chance of developing the disease.

Normally when doctors think the cancer has spread from the

breast to other parts of the body, surgeons remove the tumour and the lymph glands under the arms.

The procedure is painful and can lead to loss of sensation in the arm.

But now the researchers at the University of Wales, Cardiff, suggest it is unnecessary in two thirds of cases. They say that removing one of the glands is just as effective. Using a small dose of radioactivity doctors can inject a dye to identify the main gland and take that out.

The team now hopes to train surgeons in the technique for use across Britain within 18 months.

Robert Mansel, professor of surgery at the University's College of Medicine, said the technique means women need only have a small operations.

He said: "The standard practice at the moment for managing the lymph glands under the arm is that we have to take them all out. The reason for that is we need to know whether the cancer has spread to them. The new technique allows us just to take the most important node - the sentinel node.

"This means the woman who doesn't have any spread only has a very small operation."

Trials of 1,000 women show promising results. Victoria Yeates took part in the study.

She said: "It is a very devastating thing to get cancer. And it is very traumatic to have your breast operated on. This trial offers women the chance of keeping that trauma to a minimum. I have total mobility in my arm and have no side effects."