Cancer You - Raffles Medical Group

Raffles HealthNews Feature 19Cancer, defined as an invasivegrowth of abnormal cells forming amalignant tumour within the body, is adisease not to be taken lightly. Currentlywithout a cure or a vaccine (for mostcancers), dealing with cancer has mostlybeen a drawn out and painful affair forpatients. Treatment options, such aschemotherapy and radiotherapy bringabout a host of side effects that canmake a patient feel like they are sufferingfrom a second disease. All this certainlydoes seem to reinforce the idea thatgetting a diagnosis of cancer is akin toreceiving a death sentence in court.However, there exists another typeof treatment option, which for certaincancers, actually prove to be moreeffective than chemotherapy andradiotherapy. And that is surgery.Cancer surgery, which involves theremoval of the cancerous tumour plusthe surrounding lymph node drainageareas, aims to be curative and is infact the first line of treatment for certaintypes of cancer, according to Dr NgChin, Specialist in General Surgery &Consultant, Raffles Surgery Centre. DrNg cautions that cancer surgery doesnot claim to be a miracle treatment andits role can be limited in advanced caseswhere the cancerous tumour has spread(metastasised) all over the body.Unfortunately, the invasive natureof surgery brings about its owndisadvantages which can compelpatients to request for chemotherapyand radiotherapy instead.Thankfully, advancements have madesurgery a more appealing option. In fact,some of these improvements are so vastthat conventional cancer surgery maybe viewed from an entirely different andpositive perspective, adds Dr Ng. In thenext part of this story, we will highlightsome of these new techniques used invarious types of cancers.A woman’sbreast friendOne of the most common forms ofcancer affecting women, a diagnosis ofbreast cancer affects the patient in moreways than one. Dr Felicia Tan, Specialistin General Surgery & Consultant, RafflesSurgery Centre explains, “On top of theobvious health implications, there arealso social stigmas which accompany thepatient. For example, if a mastectomy(breast removal) is the only viable optionfor treatment, women will also tend toworry about how their partners will viewthem after the operation. They may alsobecome depressed and choose not toleave the house for fear of how theywould look to others.”As a result, breast cancer patients areusually caught between a rock anda hard place. Fortunately, having amastectomy then living with just one oreven no breast is a thing of the past.Surgical techniques are now moreadvanced, and Dr Tan is able to performon some patients with isolated breastcancer tumours what is known as anipple or skin sparing mastectomy withimmediate breast reconstruction.This operation removes all breast tissuebut spares the natural skin and possiblyeven nipple, thereby retaining its natural