The Nation - News from Aug. 12, 1985

The American Cancer Society, saying “there is no one approach suited to the needs of all patients with breast cancer,” endorsed a variety of treatments for the disease and said the appropriate one should be worked out between a patient and her doctor. The society strongly recommended testing during surgery to determine if the cancerous tissue is hormone-dependent and said women about to undergo breast cancer surgery should request such a test. The society endorsed the three surgical techniques used to remove the breast--simple mastectomy, modified radical mastectomy and radical mastectomy.