Chemotherapy options

Chemotherapy may be used to treat patients with locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer, some rarer types of breast cancer as well as breast cancers with a high likelihood of recurrence. Your medical oncologist may recommend chemo before you undergo breast cancer surgery or after surgery.

Neoadjuvant (or primary systemic) chemotherapy

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy may be used before surgery to reduce the size of large breast tumors and destroy cancer cells. This type of chemotherapy often makes breast-conserving surgery possible. It also helps our doctors determine the effectiveness of a particular regimen on the breast tumor.

Adjuvant breast cancer chemotherapy

Adjuvant chemotherapy may be used after surgery or radiation therapy to help eliminate remaining cancer cells that may not have been removed during breast cancer surgery and/or radiation therapy. It may also prevent the disease from spreading to other parts of the body.