Concerned about cancer recurrence, women with breast cancer often choose a mastectomy over a less-drastic lumpectomy when they have control over the decision, a new study found.
This, despite the fact that survival odds — though not recurrence rates — are the same with the two procedures.
The study findings appear in the August issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
The issue is that surgeons have been blamed for being too aggressive with recommendations. However, study suggests that it is often patients, not their surgeons, who are opting for the mastectomies.