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Is A Double Mastectomy The Right Option?

Dr. Mehra Golshan performs a bilateral mastectomy (Courtesy of Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Center)
Dr. Mehra Golshan performs a bilateral mastectomy (Courtesy of Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Center)

About one in seven American women will face breast cancer at some point in their lives. Then, they face a choice: get just the area of tumor removed, or the whole breast. Some are opting for an even more invasive option – get both breasts removed, even though one is healthy.

New research finds more women are choosing those double mastectomies, even though for most, their odds of survival will not get any better. Carey Goldberg of Here & Now contributor WBUR reports.

  • Read more via WBUR’s CommonHealth
  • Reporter

  • Carey Goldberg, co-host of WBUR's CommonHealth blog. She tweets @commonhealth.
  • Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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