Breast cancer has been a major killing force among women worldwide. Breast cancer treatment is getting better over time and people now have more options to consider than before. With so many different treatment options available, people can now study the choice they have and choose what’s better for them.
All breast cancer treatments have two key objectives:
- To refrain the disease from coming back
- To get rid of the cancerous cells in the breast as much as possible
Breast cancer treatment in India is provided by Apollo Hospitals in Chennai. The average breast cancer treatment cost in India is between 5-6 lakhs including investigations, diagnosis, and treatment.
How to decide which breast cancer treatment option to choose?
The following things will be considered by your doctor in deciding the best possible treatment for you:
- The kind of breast cancer that you have
- Whether your tumor has receptors for estrogen, HER2 protein, progesterone, and other specific features
- The size of the tumor and how far has the cancer spread in the body i.e. the stage of the cancer
- Lastly, is the age factor, whether you have gone through the phase of menopause and any other health conditions if you have, and your personal preference will also play a key role in the decision-making process
Following treatments can help cure breast cancer without surgery:
- Radiation therapy:
This treatment helps to remove or destroy the disease within the breast and nearby tissues, such as Lymph nodes. This treatment is performed with the use of high-energy waves to kill cancer cells. This treatment is recommended when the disease has spread to nearby tissues as well. This helps to remove the cancerous cells that surgeons couldn’t remove at the time of the surgery. Radiation is given from a machine outside your body or you might have tiny seeds that give off radiation placed inside your breast where the tumor had set. The three types of radiation therapy include:
- Brachytherapy:
This type of radiation is given by placing radioactive sources into the tumor.
- Intraoperative radiation therapy:
This is when radiation therapy is given using a probe in the operating room.
- External-beam radiation therapy:
This is the most common type of radiation given by machines outside the body. This includes breast radiation therapy and partial breast radiation as well as accelerate breast radiation which takes several days instead of weeks.
- Chemotherapy:
This treatment helps destroy or control cancer cells over the body. It is the use of drugs to kill cancerous cells. You need to take medicine through IV or as pills. Most people take this after the surgery to kill any cancer cells left behind. Doctors advise it to be used before the surgery as well to make the tumors smaller. Chemotherapy works really well for harmful tumors but they can also affect healthy cells.
- Hormone therapy:
This therapy is with the use of drugs to prevent the hormones especially estrogen fuelling the growth of breast cancer cells. Medicines for postmenstrual women include Arimidex, Aromasin, Femara, and medicines for women after and before menopause include Nolvadex. Some types of these therapies work by stopping ovaries to make hormones through medication. Falsodex is said to be the injection that keeps estrogen from attaching to the cancer cells.
- Targeted therapy:
This therapy triggers your body’s immune system to help destroy cancerous cells in the body. It is with the use of medicine that targeted breast cancer cells that have a high level of a protein called HER2. Kadcyla is the medicine that combines Herceptin and chemotherapy medicine emtansine to target HER2 positive cancer cells.
- Immunotherapy:
This is the use of your own immune system to target cancer. Drugs namely Tecentriq and Trodelvy have been approved to treat triple-negative breast cancer that has spread in the body.
All the above-listed treatments can be used in combination with one another. All these treatments can help kill cancerous cells left behind during the surgery.
Best Cancer Hospital in India:
Any person dealing with breast cancer needs to look for the best treatment for breast cancer In India with the right kind of treatment and at the right hospital. The top list of hospitals include:
- Tata Memorial Government Hospital (MUMBAI)
- Fortis Malar Private Hospital (CHENNAI)
- Apollo Hospitals (CHENNAI)
- Artemis Hospitals (GURUGRAM)
- AIIMS (New Delhi)
Breast cancer is a life-threatening disease. Finding the best treatment for breast cancer in India with accurate diagnosis and treatment is crucial in curing the disease.
Tips to help you choose:
- Talk with your doctor about all the risks and benefits associated with each of the treatment and how it will affect your lifestyle
- Ask your doctor if you should join a clinical trial- a research study test that introduces new treatment before it is made available to the public.
- Think about joining a support group as other people involved understand your journey well and help guide you better with the treatment as well.
Side effects of the treatment:
Most treatments have side effects. Many go away once the therapy stops. However, common side effects include:
- Nausea
- Fatigue
- Depression
- Arm swelling
- Weight Loss or weight gain
- Mouth sores
- Trouble sleeping
- Changes in the skin or nail
- Symptoms of menopause include hot flashes
- Trouble getting pregnant
- Trouble thinking clearly
In breast cancer care, all teams of doctors specializing in different areas of cancer treatment such as radiology, oncology work together to create a patient’s treatment plan. Tata Memorial Hospital, The Cancer Institute, Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute are among the best cancer hospitals in India. You will find the best treatment for breast cancer in India at these hospitals. Breast cancer treatment in India is economical and cheap compared to other developed nations in the world. The average cost of breast cancer treatment at a private practitioner would be 5 to 6 lakh including radiotherapy, investigations, and surgery. While it may go up to 20 lakh with cycles of targeted therapy.
