Current Status of Prophylactic Mastectomy
October 1st 2002Ghosh and Hartmann present an excellent overview on the risk reduction that prophylactic mastectomy offers the high-risk patient. Dr. Hartmann and the Mayo Clinic remain leaders in this field. As cited in their recent series, the risk of developing breast cancer is reduced 89.5% to 100% in high-risk women who choose to undergo prophylactic mastectomy.[1] In the same year, Meijers-Heijboer et al supported these findings, documenting a 100% relative risk reduction.[2] The fact that prophylactic surgery offers a dramatic reduction in the risk of breast cancer to high-risk patients appears unquestionable.