Abstract

Most women with early breast cancer have the option of surgery that conserves the breast or mastectomy. In 1990, a consensus statement of the United States National Institutes of Health concluded that breast conservation was appropriate for early breast cancer, and was preferable to total mastectomy because it provided equivalent survival while preserving the breast. This theme was taken up in Australia with the release of the NHMRC Clinical practice guidelines for the management of early breast cancer in October 1995. The proportion of women receiving breast conserving surgery thus became an indicator for monitoring the uptake of a new treatment option for breast cancer.