ABSTRACT
In recent years there have been a number of new exciting developments in the management of patients with breast cancer. Conservative surgery has gained popularity as the definitive surgical procedure for patients with a primary breast malignancy. This chapter reviews instruments which have been developed specifically for breast cancer, particularly in reference to their use in a particular stage of breast cancer. Adjuvant chemotherapy decreases recurrence and improves survival in women with axillary node positive breast cancer and is the treatment of choice in premenopausal patients with such disease. Since existing intruments failed to adequately describe the morbidity experienced by Stage II breast cancer patients receiving chemotherapy, a new questionnaire, the Breast Cancer Chemotherapy Questionnaire was developed. It measured the impact of adjuvant chemotherapy on aspects of physical, emotional and social function which were important to such patients. Traditionally, chemotherapy has been used to cause tumor regression and thereby palliate symptoms and improve quality of life.
